Reactions
by aidan bard
Summary: Should be read after Adjustments. Continuation of the problems Wufei and Heero face. Warning : MPREG , SLASH 1x5
1. Chapter 1

**Sex and the sink**

Heero walked into the bathroom, preoccupied by the day's schedule, and handed over the palmtop to Wufei who was brushing his teeth by the sink, dressed in his briefs. "You've got a message from head office," he said as he passed over the object then watched as Wufei spat into the sink absentmindedly, opened the message and scrolled down to read it. The Preventer frowned at the contents then glanced up at Heero as if to confirm his partner had not seen it.

"I've got to go to the office," he said apologetically even as he switched off the display and passed it back to Heero. Heero knew from experience that the message would most likely be erased and did not bother checking. He could have found a way to retrieve it quite easily but trust, he knew, was an important part in any relationship and he would be a fool to try and sneak a peak at Wufei's communication with Headquarters. At least he thought it was from Headquarters since it had a Preventer-level encryption on it.

But that did not stop Heero from scowling, "We were going to pick up Duo from the spaceport," he said.

"Oh," said Wufei after he had finished rinsing his mouth, sounding more preoccupied than sorry he was missing his friend. "Why don't you pick him up? I'll bring lunch and …"

"You said you'll cook," Heero managed to force out steadily hoping he did not sound like a petulant wife. In his condition it was the last thing he needed. Heero just wished Wufei would tell him this big secret that needed him back at work on his off day.

For a moment Heero was sure Wufei was going to snap back and remind him that between the two of them, Wufei was the one with a steady job, but all Wufei did was turn around and start to wash his face. In Heero's book that meant Wufei was feeling guilty and that was an admission in its own right. While Wufei could very well be feeling sorry for not meeting Duo at the spaceport Heero did not think that was the case.

"I'm sorry," Wufei said, his voice sounding muffled, his head bend forward. "I…" Wufei continued to speak with his face immersed in water but Heero had stopped listening by then. The way Wufei was standing made him look vulnerable; his hair fell forward exposing his smooth back and his neck, and his low-riding briefs exposed the top of his butt tantalizingly. Heero could feel his interest growing as he carefully placed the palm top on the ledge that ran around the bathroom.

Heero deliberately took a step forward until his jeans-clad groin was flush against Wufei's partially covered bottom.

Wufei stiffened. Heero waited for the inevitable explosion but none came. Instead, Wufei slowly closed the tap while grinding back against Heero's rapidly hardening front. Heero inhaled sharply, taking in the scent of his lover as he ran a hand over the exposed back. He traced the knobs of the spine and leaned forward so he could kiss the uncovered neck. Like most Asians, Wufei had almost hairless skin[1], back looked smooth and unblemished in the faint yellow light of the bathroom. At least he had not been hurt with enough force to leave blatantly visible scar on his back and for that Heero was grateful. He kissed the expanse of skin, taking time to leave love bites that would be covered by the shirt. Only the two of them would know the bite marks existed. When Heero looked up, he could see Wufei's face reflected in the mirror over the sink, his eyes closed, cheeks flushed, lips parted slightly, breathing heavily.

Then very carefully, Heero leaned forward again and bit into the chord above where the neck met the body, knowing he was leaving a mark on his lover which the high collar of the Preventer uniform could not hide. Then he drew back and hooked a finger under Wufei's waistband and pulled down the scarp of cloth inch by inch, enjoying the view. Still, Wufei did not do anything apart from moving his feet further apart, exposing himself to Heero.

Heero ran a finger down Wufei's spine until it dipped past the tail bone into the puckered opening which was his final destination. Though he did not say anything, Wufei's unexpected meekness excited Heero – it was not very often that they made love these days – the night before had been more of an exception than the rule. While there was none of the stiffness of the previous weeks, it seemed to Heero that Wufei was not too pleased with the unexpected complication in their lives. Wufei willing and submissive – and silent was bonus he was unwilling to pass up.

Heero looked around until he found a proper substitute for lube – they were in the bathroom after all – and then undid the button of his jeans and pulled down the zip. The sound the zipper seemed very loud in the silent room, only punctuated by Wufei's loud breathing. Heero eased down his jeans up to his knees, just enough to give him room for movement and expose his erect cock. Then he flicked open the bottle of hair conditioner and managed to squeeze some out single handedly. He eased one lubricated finger into Wufei, listening to the sharply drawn breath, enjoying the play of emotion on his face, visible in the mirror, the way Wufei twitched faintly and bit his lower lip.

"Don't," Heero said softly. "Don't bite your lip. I want to hear you." Even as he spoke, he eased in another finger and all Wufei could do was moan and nod his understanding. Heero scissored his fingers and decided Wufei was ready. Since their first time when Wufei had bled, Heero always took time to prepare his lover properly but they had fucked the night before so two fingers were sufficient.

Heero put some conditioner on his dick and eased in slowly, watching for a reaction. Wufei's eyes were still closed. He was still self-conscious and embarrassed about seeing the expression of pleasure on his own face reflected by the mirror – that was one of the reasons Heero liked to do it in the bathroom - but his lips were parted and he was gasping for breath. He did not seem to be in any pain so Heero pushed in until be was buried to the hilt in the inviting, tight heat.

He began to move slowly, taking his cues from Wufei – changing his angle repeatedly until he hit the exact spot, holding Wufei's hips firmly in a grasp he knew would leave bruises later on.[2]

Wufei moaned, loosing his tightly held restraint as Heero sped up his thrusts. He gripped the sink with both hands, his head hanging down and his hair swaying over the bowl. Heero slid a hand around and grabbed Wufei erection, brushing his thumb over the wet tip. Wufei swatted away his hand impatiently, taking himself in his own palm, and urged him to go faster by pushing back. Heero allowed himself a feral grin and pulled back so he could reach deeper with each push. He stroked Wufei roughly, letting his calloused palm close over the hard cock, knowing Wufei was close as well. As quick and efficient in battle, they usually handled sex with the same neat economics – no need to drag it out, just go in and get it done the quickest and most satisfying way possible, that was the philosophy they both lived by. So it came as no surprise that it ended within a few seconds after that, Wufei's release splattering the sink as Heero slumped on his flushed, sweaty back, trying to regain his breath.

Heero pulled out slowly as soon as he came to his senses and found himself crushing Wufei against the sink. He took a step back and helped Wufei find his footing, turned him around and kissed him gently on the lips. Wufei leaned against Heero's chest and Heero could feel his lover's legs trembling.

"I'm going to …have to shower," Wufei said in a slightly unsteady voice as he tried to step back, swayed and leaned against Heero again.

"I could help," Heero offered. "That's all," he added. Even Heero Yuy needed time to recover after that.

Wufei seemed to consider it for a moment before shaking his head, taking in Heero fully dressed state. "No, we have to hurry. Duo's due in an hour and I have to get to the office as soon as possible." He turned around and stepped into the shower cubicle. Heero saw a faint wince of pain mar his face. He had been a little rough towards the end though a hot shower would help, Heero decided. He would have felt guilty about the whole thing if Wufei was not heading towards Sharine.

**How Sharine met Wufei **

Things had started off on the wrong foot right on the day when Sharine had first met her partner.

"You either put up with your new partner or you're back in the Accounts department running coffee," Lady Une had told Sharine as she sat across the table. "Questions?"

"Partner?" Sharine had asked feeling excited. A real partner meant real field work and that was a big step from what she had been doing. Well, getting a hundred and fifty five cups of sweet latte-no sugar – just a drop of honey and those chocolate sprinkled Danishes with strawberry glazing made from real sugar from the bakery down the street for the office bitches was hardly demanding work.

"You'll be partnered with Chang Wufei," Lady Une had told her in a voice that said '_don't-argue-back_'. After years of living in a Catholic convent—orphanage under the iron rule of Mother Superior, Sharine knew better than to say anything.

Sharine had not been sure what to expect. Chang Wufei was a legend in the Preventers and everyone knew his name but she, who partially lived in the basement, was yet to set her eyes on him. What she knew was that he had more field decorations than anyone else in the department and he was also still on active duty. She had imagined someone old or mature—how else would he have collected such a large number of commendations.

When Sharine told people at the office of her new assignment even the meanest bitch from the accounts department looked sorry for her, as if she had just been diagnosed with some sort of rare, incurable bone marrow cancer. Chang Wufei seemed to have gone out with and broken the hearts of half the women in the first floor and three fifth of the women in the second floor and the percentage kept increasing by floor. Sharine had a feeling he'd never reached Accounts because he must not have made it past the seventh floor where Lady Une had her main office.

But when Shairne met him for the first time, she had to admit, it was certainly not what she expected.

He was young – perhaps a couple of years older than her but not in his fifties or late forties as she'd expected him to be. He was also short and Chinese which is kind of obvious from his name but still,– a combination which ensured he was far from being drop dead gorgeous as she'd been led to believe by his numerous exploits in the romance department. Being five feet tall herself, she was hardly the type to judge the height of other people but compared to all those muscle-bound macho-men running around, Chang Wufei did not look like much. He was slender and had slicked back long hair, which he wore in a ponytail. In the right light, he kind of reminded her of a boyish girl – slightly androgynous - except for the shoulders. The only thing he had seemingly going for him was that he fitted into his uniform well.

The thing he had not going for him was his personality. Sharine was not sure what thoes women had seen in him.

"You're pairing me up with a woman!" he had yelled the moment he had been told the news.

"This is Sharine, your new partner," Lady Une said as if she hadn't heard him.

"No," Chang had said through ground teeth.

"Sit down and go through the report," Lady Une had said in a voice which said '_did-not-hear-you-and nor-do-want-to_.'

"Why a woman?" Chang had protested loudly. "Dammit, don't tell me you have shortage of men in this department."

"Actually the ratio of male to female Preventers is …" Sharine had started to explain out of old habit after spending a year and a half in the accounts department, which also had a side branch called Statistics.

"Typical women," Chang had muttered sitting on the chair next to her carefully. "I don't read gossip columns."

That had put her in her place. She had blushed then looked down at her lap where her hands were clenched into fists.

"Think you can leave now," Lady Une said without missing a beat, her voice cold. "Someone needs to show the rookie the ropes and…"

"Do you mind?" Chang grumbled. "I just came back from L4 and I'd much rather someone else handle such insignificant matters…"

Better than mere mortals, was he? The fact he was arguing with Lady Une had been enough of an indication but the way he ignored her was even more disheartening.

"The situation needs your delicate touch," Lady Une said sounding slightly sarcastic.

Sharine had looked at his hands. They were rather small and delicate looking indeed, if not for those calluses on his palms, but did not think that was what Lady Une was referring to.

"Get going you two," Lady Une had continued. "– time's a-wasting."

"Fine," the annoying man had said, sounding none too grateful as he had stood up and brushed his palms on his trousers. Sharine had gotten up as well, at a loss of anything to do, and reached for the door since she was closer to it. As she had been about to open the door, Chang had reached past her, closed his hands around the knob and jerked it open with a vicious jerk. Then he had stood there – waiting.

It had taken her three seconds to realize he was holding the door open for her, the way those gentlemen did in the eighteenth century. After staring at him for another five seconds, while the scowl in his face turned volcanic, Sharine scampered out the office, mystified.

She was not sure what to think of her new partner. She was sure it was going to be interesting working with him. Little did she expect to fall in love with him.

- ^&*($#!~ -

Being impressed by a senior partner's commendations was a common thing but most rookies discover that their idol had no feet at all when it came to field work. Therefore, it came as a startling surprise for Sharine that after her first field case with Wufei she was impressed by his actions.

She had dropped in unannounced at Wufei's apartment to inform him that they had been assigned to a case and he had answered the door dressed in a pair of loose white cotton pants, sweat soaked hair with strands escaping the severe hair style he preferred at work and a long sword.

There had been no point in denying it, Wufei was rather well built. His form was more in line of a long distance runner trained for endurance rather than that of brute strength. While his tailor made Preventer uniform made him look good, it also seemed to make him appear relatively harmless like a well polished Chinese doll – but now he looked more dangerous. Sharine had to swallow before she could tell him of their new mission and Wufei had nodded, pausing only to change into comfortable clothes and join her in the elevator. He had not bothered changing into his field uniform, just casual slacks and a loose shirt and combed back his hair half-heartedly – it was his day off after all.

Once they were confined within the limited space of the elevator, Sharine made another discovery – Wufei had not bothered to shower (it was an emergency, she supposed so such things could be put off for a while) and she could smell him. He smelled of sweat, metal and pine-scented fabric softener. It was not as bad as she'd have thought it would be – it was surprisingly peasant and something of a turn on. It had the effect of making her even more nervous around her partner – which made her act like a flustered airhead whenever she spoke to him.

Wufei did not have much patience for airheads who were unable recite precise case details.

"What do you mean Laura Windsgate tried to stab one of her teachers?" he said, pouncing on the loose ends. "Isn't Agent Walker supposed to be on guard duty?"

"I think he was guarding her against outside attacks, not the other way around," Sharine managed to say evenly enough.

"Still, that's not an excuse," Wufei said, looking disgruntled. "He should know enough to pay attention to all the details not just a few facts. He's hardly a rookie." He gave her a sideway look, which indicated just what he thought of incompetent rookies, and Sharine made a mental note to count to ten before speaking in case she blurted out anything stupid.

Wufei did not look scary – he looked hot and she was starting to become extremely aware of it. "But why am I the one to mop up this mess?" he said with a scowl. "Let the local police handle it. She's a minor so the most she'll get is a juvenile record."

"She is also the daughter of Governor Windsgate, Earth Ambassador to L4, and this could cause a diplomatic incident should it get out," Sharine told her superior with a small grin.

"We're Preventers not publicity agents," Wufei told her, his displeasure evident. "Well, I suppose we should go there as soon as possible and get this over with," he added almost as an afterthought. "We'll go by bike –helmet?"

Sharine knew by reputation that Wufei rode his bike like a madman with a death wish and no one, not ever, took up his offer to give them a ride. But she also did want to desperately impress her partner and this was as good a chance as any.

"No," she said a little hastily. "No… helmet, I'm fine."

"As you wish," said Wufei with a brisk nod. He walked over to his bike, the Preventer special, which looked far too large for his slender form to handle. But he wheeled it smoothly as if it was a bicycle and mounted it with ease, though Sharine noted that he had to stretch his feet to reach the ground with both toes. "Get on."

Sharine nodded nervously, her mouth too dry to speak and climbed on a little clumsily. The bike was one of those that seemed to slope forward for the rider was almost pushed vertical and the passenger plastered over him. She tried to find a comfortable position that did not have her crotch, breasts or other body parts pressed against her partner, but gave up when she slid forward nevertheless.

"Have you been on a bike before," Wufei, who was oblivious to Sharine's problem of anatomical placement, spoke and she jumped, shook her head before realizing that he could not see her with his back turned towards her.

"No," she said, and again her voice sounded breathless much to her annoyance.

"Hold onto me," he said. "If you think I'm going too fast, pinch my middle and I'll stop."

Sharine opened her mouth to either protest or to question that statement, even she didn't know which, when the bike roared to life and it was either cling to Wufei like a limpet or be left behind on the underground parking floor.

Wufei's body was well muscled, his middle flat and firm. He was still sweaty but the updraft created by the bike was drying him swiftly. They were going rather fast, Sharine supposed, but she did not care. She could feel Wufei's body pressed against her, smell him and feel his heart beat through the thin cotton shirt he wore. She was desperately, desperately aware of just how much he had to offer.

But he still had a horrible personality, she reminded herself as a last resort. No matter how good his body felt or how cute he looked when he was angry he was such an awful person. She repeated to herself, '_You can't fall for him, he's still a jerk and you know you can't stand jerks._'

Wufei was, by no means, an easy person to work with and he tended to moan about 'being partnered with a woman' until he seemed to have gotten it down to a fine art. There was no way she could even like the guy, Sharine decided. He was definitely anti-social, despite the number of females who seemed to throw themselves at him regularly. He was crass, loud and extremely hard to get on with. He had outdated ideas about women, which included things like opening doors for her as if they she was a weakling, unable to do it on her own, and that women did _things_ in a special area called Ladies rooms which men could not even imagine. This in turn meant that women's toilets were a sacred area where no male (i.e. Wufei) would dare venture.

Which was how Sharine found herself in the girls' toilets at Bayside High, waiting for the 'friend of the suspect' to come out. Sharine stepped back to let the occupant in one of the stalls brush past her and then willed the centre stall door to open and disgorge its inhabitant. She was not feeling very patient – she wanted out of the crummy, disinfectant-smelling room very, very badly.

After what felt like a lifetime, the girl, Jana – small, bespectacled and serious looking –stepped out. She had been crying. Her eyes shimmered red and swollen behind the thick lenses but she seemed to be over it. "I have been thinking." For a small girl her voice was rather firm and Sharine remembered that Jana was an extremely active person, president of the schools debating team.

"Good for you, kid," Sharine said glumly. Babysitting duty was the last thing she wanted to be saddled with but Wufei seemed to assume just because she was female she was automatically capable of dealing with kids. Jana nodded decisively and then opened her mouth, resembling some small bird that, for a moment, Sharine wanted to smile despite the gravity of the situation. "If you have anything else to add, you might want to tell that in front of my partner," she said instead.

"The guy out front?" Jana asked, her voice taking a more lively tone. "He's rather cute, isn't he?"

Sharine tried to remember if she, at fourteen, had also been checking out guys who were almost a decade older than her, then dismissed the speculation as nonsensical. She had to admit, her partner – her mentor and senior – whatever, was rather good looking.

"Let's just go," Sharine said finally and placed a firm hand on the back of the girl, pushing her out. She'd had enough of kids for one day.

Wufei looked up as they exited the girls' room, seemed to want ask something then snapped his mouth shut and looked away, slightly embarrassed. Sharine did not need to be a mind reader to know that he had been about ask why they had decided to stay in the girls' toilets for half an hour and then decided that he did not want to know the answer. Sharine decided that she would tell him later on that it had been Jana, sobbing in the stall, who had delayed them and nothing else.

"I want to tell you something," Jana said, her eyes fixed on Wufei, smiling expectantly.

The intense gaze seemed to make Wufei uncomfortable, though all he did was to look at Sharine and say, "find us a free classroom, we'll talk there."

- - - -### - ### - #### - - - -

"So," said Sharine as soon as they were in the small room which they had been assigned to by the school during the investigation. "Now what?"

"You go home," Wufei told Sharine as if he had already thought it over. "File a report and do something. I'll take it from here."

"Like hell you will." The words burst from her lips before she could stop it. "I'm not going to let you handle this alone."

"Go home, woman," Wufei snapped after a two second delay when he took stock of the situation. "I'll deal with this."

"This is my case, too," Sharine said forcefully, unwilling to let go. She didn't like Jana much but from what she had said, her friend had gone crazy and tried to stab her class teacher because she was being abused at home by her stepfather. The stepfather turned out to be _the_ William Windsgate,

"This does not concern you," Wufei said, looking out the window.

"That Windsgate decided he did not want to be caught with some underage girl in a brothel so he adopted one for easy access?" Sharine snapped angrily. "I know what it's like for girls to wind up in wrong homes … I grew up in an orphanage and most of the girls there were placed to foster homes since their families were unfit." She wanted to tell him about everything that she had seen and heard of during her time at the orphanage but did not want to sound like some overreacting bitch.

"We can't go barging into his house," Wufei told her pointedly. "He's got diplomatic immunity."

Sharine nodded, understanding, as her shoulders slumped with despair. At the Preventer training facility, dubbed the Cruncher by the students there, she had been taught the basic laws on which Preventers operated. While they were the law, they were not above the law, which meant that those with diplomatic immunity were untouchable.

"We can do nothing," she stated glumly.

"We call for Child Protection and they'll take her away," Wufei told her.

"But only if they can prove she's telling the truth," Sharine said in frustration. "That means countless medical and physiological tests. Until then, she has to stay in that house with him, and by the time they get a move on, it might be too late for Laura."

"Go home," Wufei told her, facing her directly. He pushed away from the windowsill he was leaning against and shrugged. "We've done all we can do here. File the report, take a bus home, go shopping and forget you ever came across this case."

"But…" Laura Windsgate was fourteen, blonde and sleek, nothing like Sharine, and she still had an inferiority complex from her school days when faced with girls who wore snobbish expressions – but that did not mean she was heartless. "She stabbed someone because that was the only way to get attention," Sharine tried again. "Laura is trapped at home – if she goes home and they leave for L4 she might never be free."

"The best option then is to slit her wrists," Wufei said callously as he walked out the room. "That's always a choice if you look at it that way."

Sharine stood in the middle of the room, mouth open in protest, staring at the empty doorway until the roar of the bike jerked her out of the rage induced trance. Angrily, she ran out the building to the driveway to see the smoke plume of the Preventer special vehicle disappearing into the distance.

She stomped her foot and looked up and down at the deserted driveway, scowled at the sky and realized that what Wufei had said was true. As a Preventer, she was helpless. Still, it did not make him a lesser jerk, she thought as she called for a cab.

The Insta-Cab arrived three minutes later and she got on before it even came to a proper halt. "Governor Windsgate's mansion," she told the driver. She might be helpless but she was going to do something. She couldn't let that girl remain in her desperate situation. She had taken an oath to uphold the law and save lives. She was doing just that; Wufei and everyone else be damned.

She was going to meet Governor Windsgate and talk to him even if it was the last thing she was ever going to do. Maybe if she hinted that the Preventers knew of his activities, he might keep his paws to himself which would be at least partial success.

When she arrived at the Windsgate mansion, she realized that it was extremely easy to get into. The front door made of polished crystal glass and antic wood was in pieces and there were no guards at the entrance. The condition of the door was easily explainable – someone had driven a Preventer issue bike through it and Sharine had an inkling as to whom that bike might belong to. She ran into the hallway, crunching over the broken glass, pulled out her (Preventer issue) hand gun and burst into the next room.

It was empty except for two unconscious guards. She noted that they were still breathing even as she moved into the next where – well, she was not very surprised by what she came across – Wufei stood, wielding a long sword over the prone figure of the governor. The governor was alive and conscious, just scared out of his mind.

When he sighted her Preventer uniform he gasped in relief. "Help me," he pleaded to her. "He's mad. Shoot him, he's going to kill me."

Sharine looked at Wufei, who stood, face unreadable, looking at her. '_He expects me to shoot him_,' she thought with a start. She had no idea as to what exactly was going on but she did holster her weapon slowly. (Later, she found out that she had forgotten to put the safety on – it was a minor miracle she had not lost a kidney while walking about.)

"What are you doing here?" she said to Wufei instead.

"I could ask you the same question," he told her coldly. "You should not have seen this."

"Is this why you didn't want me to come with you?' she asked despite the audience. "You didn't want me to see this."

"I work alone," he said with a shrug. "Lady Une knows that – which was why she told you to tell me to handle this. If it's too sticky, I can clean it up without that many hang ups."

He was going to kill Governor Windsgate, she realized. She had been naive in thinking he hadn't cared – he did. She had been naïve in thinking a simple talk will solve all the problems. Perhaps there was only one solution but she could not stand by and let Wufei kill some guy who couldn't keep his hands off his adopted daughter. "You'll lose your job," Sharine blurted out stupidly.

"You think I care about that?" Wufei actually smiled.

"But you are a Preventer," she said desperately. "Who else can you be?"

"Justice," Wufei said even as he swung the sword. It buried itself two inches from Governor Windsgate's neck. "You're done," he said evenly to the whimpering man. "This is not a threat, this is a promise. You will leave the girl alone – any girl – and you will resign from your position. Otherwise I'll kill you."

He looked at Sharine and gave her a half smirk, which was slightly scary. "Think you can leave us alone for a bit. I promise not to kill him. I just need to talk to him in private."

Sharine looked at him for a moment, nodded, then walked out, back to the broken doorway. She had no idea as to what exactly went on in there but when fifteen minutes later Wufei emerged, blood free, from the inner mansion, she decided she did not need to know.

He stared at her for a moment and nodded. "You shouldn't have seen that."

She shrugged. "Isn't justice supposed to be blind?" She was not sure as to exactly what she meant by it, but it sounded rather clever and she was desperately in need of some clever come back lines.

Wufei gave her an inscrutable look. "Let me give you a lift home."

After that incident, Governor Windsgate resigned, his wife divorced him and left with his daughter to settle down in Hawaii.

Wufei was suspended for three weeks from field duty, which time he spent bitching at everybody in the office.

Sharine discovered that she had truly, deeply, madly, as cliché as it sounds, fallen for her partner.

Next Reactions 2- Duo

[1] Me: or so they say though I personally am very, very hairy

Stray: hm I think 'they' reserve 'Asians' for those living on the continent or in Japan.

Me: Ah!

[2] Me: I should write a scene where Wufei has to strip in an all male surrounding later on – like a mercenary camp.

Stray: heh you should! Or in front of Sharine where Wu has come out of shower with a towel around his hip but not high enough or it falls down and S goes OMG! TMI! :P

Me: Do the Preventers have communal showers ?


	2. Chapter 2

**Duo **

When Duo had told Hilde he was going to name his spaceship Deathscythe she had laughed in his face and told him he was a child refusing to let go of the past. Duo had looked at the blue piece of junk which he had assembled anddecided she just didn't get irony.

Hilde was nice. Duo knew that. After all, they had been together since the Mariemaia wars worked together on the junk yard together, crawled through scrap heaps and starved through dry periods of trade.

They'd made love on cold nights, buried under piles of blankets for warmth when central heating failed, blindly groping each other, feeling those contours of her body, so familiar – almost as familiar as his own.

Hilde was good to him, Duo knew. She was always ready to put up with his eccentricities like building a spaceship or adopting street kids as his own. She was good to his friends who dropped by occasionally – she even put up with Heero's more sullen moods when the part-time Preventer would visit then spend days curled up in a corner of the work bench tapping away at his laptop. But she was not really a part of them. She had been an OZ officer so there was always the 'us' and 'them' issue - she had been the enemy and there were still gray areas when it came to discussing the war. They did not agree on a lot of things and sometimes their arguments led to Duo sleeping on the sofa for days on end.

And worst of all, Hilde had parents. On L4.

True, she was the stubborn daughter who had run away from home to join the OZ army and fight a war but they did love her and had accepted her back with open arms once she'd found the courage to return to them. They did not, naturally, approve of the long haired lout their daughter had shacked up with. In their opinion Duo was a loud, boorish ruffian (her father's exact words) who was forcing their daughter to live in sin. And Duo was hardly in a position to argue.

Which was why, after their last fight, Hilde decided to visit her parents with their two adopted kids and Duo decided to drop in on Heero and Wufei.

So, Wufei and Heero's rather frantic vid-call in the middle of the night, (which hinted at a lot of things but didn't make much sense,) had tipped his hand. Duo had packed his bags, got clearance for his ship for take off and left for Earth before Hilde could have the chance to call back to apologise. Not that she ever did but this time he would not be hovering by the vid-set at home like the fool he was.

Duo groaned as he climbed down the ladder, careful not to make any sudden jumps. L2 was set at .9 Earth normal gravity and 1 g was making his knees shake. He pushed back a few strands of his hair, which was also feeling heavy, off his forehead and nodded to the clearance officer. "All set."

"All clear, Mr. Maxwell," the man said consulting his palm top. "About the containers…"

"They're a present," Duo said with a grin. "For a friend."

The man scowled. Duo knew he was puzzled but didn't know how to deal with the situation – the contents of the bottles had been tested for all known drugs and whatnots, and had come out clean so there was not much customs could do about it.

"Can I go now?" Duo asked with another cheeky grin, meant to irritate the man and then slid past the man, snagging his spaceport issued pen in the process – just to make sure he hadn't lost his edge.

'_How could anyone love Earth?'_ Duo wondered as he stepped into the arrival lounge of the spaceport. The air was breathable, the weather was fine but everything was so damn heavy. Bet all the women got sagging breasts for a reason, Duo thought as he winked at the passenger liner hostess who was strolling past in her high heels and pushing her overnight bag. She hesitated slightly, looking at him speculatively and Duo knew he hadn't lost his edge. But then he was distracted by the six-foot-something, messy-brown haired git standing in the middle of the room like a pillar, glowering at anyone who came within a three foot radius of him. Heero wore casual black slacks and a loose blue shirt, untucked, and Duo bet there was at least one handgun under the waist belt, no matter what spaceport security allowed.

"Heero," Duo exclaimed, rushing over his friend, his arms held out for a hug. Then he paused wondering whether it was appropriate to hug Heero or not, and just how hard he should hug, and finally gave up the whole thing for a pat on the shoulder. "You look good."

Duo saw a flash of emotion on Heero's face, something almost like hurt before the shuttered expression came back into place. Duo paused, wondering what to do then smiled at him winningly. "So, how are you?"

"Pregnant," Heero told him almost forcefully as if he wanted to rub Duo's face in it.

"Oh," said Duo, pausing to blink. He had not expected that. "That's what I thought you said over the vid-link but you know – I really don't think that's possible. You being a guy and all, unless there's something you'd really like to share with me …"

Heero scowled and looked away, over his shoulder. "Where's your baggage?" he said instead, his shoulders tense.

Huh, it seemed he had said something wrong, Duo realized.

"It's coming through customs now," he said in the same perky tone. "Where's Wufei – outside?"

"He's at work," Heero bit out. "Something important has come up."

Oh, so something was wrong.

"Does it have something do with the sector search he asked me to do?" Duo asked as he motioned that they should move to the cleared luggage area.

"What search?" Heero snapped then looked away, his lips thinning in displeasure. "Wufei doesn't let me get involved in those things…"

Duo forced himself not to nod in sympathy. Despite Heero's reluctance to give up work, he could see the logic in that restriction. Still, it seemed rather pointless for Duo to give relationship advice to other people when his own was on the brink of collapse. He simply shrugged then walked over to the claiming area to grab his bag. As he did, Heero appeared over his right and stooped to pick it up.

"No," Duo said a little sharper than he's intended to. "I'll carry it."

"I'll take it," Heero said with a mulish look in his face. "It's not heavy and I'm not incapacitated."

"I know," Duo said with an internal smile at the thought of _him_ offering to carry anything for Heero. "But it'll make me feel better."

Heero continued to scowl but stepped back as if he did not want to continue with the discussion. "Fine," he said then started to walk away towards the exit, his shoulders stiff, head held high.

"Hey, wait up, Heero," Duo called out. Heero stopped but did not turn around, another sign that he was hurt which did not make sense. Duo, for the world of it, couldn't see where he'd made a mistake and he did not want to start off on a wrong foot, so to speak. He trotted forward, cursing the Earth gravity which made him feel sixty, grabbed Heero by the upper arm and tugged. Heero did not move but he did look over his shoulder inquiringly at Duo as if expecting him to say something.

Rolling his eyes, Duo indicated that they continue their conversation somewhere a little more private and Heero let Duo drag him into the unisex toilet cubicle in the corner by the exit, which was surprisingly clean for a public utility. Duo spun Heero around and faced him the instant they were inside. "Ok, spill. What did I do? Kick your puppy, make eyes at Wufei?"

Heero had the nerve to look blank.

"Why am I getting the cold shoulder treatment from you all of a sudden?" Duo tried again.

Heero continued to look blank which was, by nature, an extremely good evasion tactic but a damn annoying one and totally useless against Duo who'd had to put up with it before. He crossed his arms across his chest and took the stance of someone impatiently waiting for an answer. Heero looked away then shrugged. "Nothing," he said and then gestured towards the cubicle. "Use that if you want to, we've got to…"

"The day you think you can brush me away is the day you get to watch Relena jerk off in the shower – or whatever females do in there," Duo said forcefully. So it was not exactly the image he wanted to create at the moment but he did not care much about it. Duo stepped right into Heero's personal space and tipped his head back to look straight into those blue eyes. "Spill. What did I do in the five seconds I spoke to you?"

"Hug me," Heero said softly.

Duo stopped, his mouth open, staring for three seconds before he threw his hands around Heero and gave him a full body hug. It was, he supposed a little difficult to balance his bag, stand on tiptoes and hug a guy who was taller than him without pressing against his middle but Duo managed it with some success. He half-expected Heero to act the way he usually did, be as stiff as a board, or push Duo away with a simple pat on the shoulder - not hug him right back, pulling him closer.

Something inside Duo, a part of him he did not want to admit existed, shifted and came to life making it hard for him to breathe for a second but he pushed it away. Heero was a friend, his best friend and anyway, Heero was with Wufei – whatever Duo was thinking was better left the way it was. Instead he concentrated on cataloguing the physical changes Heero seemed to have undergone since they'd last met.

For one thing, Heero had put on some weight. It was not very obvious, at least not under the loose clothing he wore, but with his arms around Heero, Duo could feel the gentle rise of his stomach, like a small beer belly, press against his middle. If it had been anyone else but Heero Duo would have dismissed it as some extra fat around the waist but he knew better. Heero Yuy did not put on weight so this had to be the reason Duo was on Earth.

Duo could feel Heero's shoulder holster underneath the loose shirt as he gave him one more squeeze before pulling back. Heero looked a tad more relaxed than he had before and his face seemed to have cleared.

"Alright," Duo said, balancing his bag. "What was that about?"

"Thought you might not want to hug me because I was pregnant," Heero said softly.

Duo took it in and then snarled, "Is Wufei treating you right?"

Heero seemed slightly taken back by the question though he smiled and nodded. "Yes," he said with nod of his head. "Though there was a time in the beginning when he did not want to touch me."

Duo tensed then relaxed. If Heero and Wufei were over whatever rough patch they had been going through it was not his place to interfere. "But not anymore, right?" he said instead of demanding more information.

"We're fine," Heero reassured him. "I think Wufei didn't know what to do when I, in his own words, turned into a woman. But he did treat me a little different and when you refused to touch me – I thought it was because of the baby."

"I'm sorry," Duo said hugging Heero firmly once more to emphasis the point. "You didn't act as if you've ever enjoyed having me jump on you before…"

"But it's never stopped you," Heero pointed out with a small smile.

"Well," said Duo at a loss of what you say. "Let's head out, you know …two men in a public toilet hugging does lead to rumors."

"Fine," said Heero as he held out his hand for Duo's bag.

"You sure junior won't mind you straining yourself?" Duo asked, patting Heero's middle, now that he could comfortably bring up the subject.

Heero stilled for a moment and let his hand fall. "That's what Wufei says," he said with a scowl.

"So," said Duo instead indicating they should head out. "How are … is …junior?"

"Fine."

"Let me get this straight," Duo said with a tilt of his head. "You're over three and a half months preg…" damn, he couldn't say that word with a straight face when it came to Heero, so he covered his slip with a small cough. "…nant. Shouldn't you be showing more?"

"Four months by the end of this week," Heero said with a nod as they walked towards the exit. "Sally says it's my build and muscle tone."

"How are you?" Duo said then held up a hand to stall any funny one word replies. "Really."

Heero seemed to consider the answer as they stepped into the open and Duo gasped as the sunlight hit him. Real light was always so much brighter than it was on the colonies and the air smelled so different. Not bad, just odd and it took a while to get used to. Heero indicated to where he'd parked the car and as they started walking, Heero spoke softly, as if afraid someone might be listening. "I'm fine, really. I seem to be eating twice as much and sleep more but Sally says that my body's way of coping with the extra passenger. Other than that, I'm fine. Though I think she'd have been happier if I got morning sickness or back aches."

"That's women for you," Duo said with a wry grin as they reached the car. He wanted to ask if it was all right for Heero to drive but it seemed a rather stupid question so he got into the passenger side. "Where're we heading?"

"We'll pick up Wufei and go over to our place for lunch," Heero said once they were both seated. "Unless you have plans…"

"No," Duo said dismissively. "I came all the way here to see you so what else would I be doing?"

What about your yard?" Heero asked and then added. "How're Hilde and the kids?"

"On L4," Duo said shortly. "Visiting her parents."

"So who's looking after your business?"

"I'm taking a break from work," Duo said, which was true. However, Heero was far from stupid so he changed the subject hastily. "What about your work… you on maternity leave now?"

"Indefinite sick leave," Heero said with a grimace. "Lady Une is wondering what's wrong with me."

"She doesn't know?" said Duo in surprise.

"Only, you three, Wufei and Sally," Heero replied and Duo did not need to ask who 'you three' were. "We thought it best if less people knew."

Duo nodded in understanding. "The less the better I guess, in this case."

Heero nodded and overtook a car while Duo fiddled with the controls of the ac. Earth did not have a humidity control unit in the atmosphere and he was starting to sweat – and he knew his shirt was sticking to the back like a wet rag. He looked at Heero, who was resistant to the heat as usual and smiled wryly. Then he cleared his throat and said carefully, "So, girl or boy?"

Heero overtook a slower moving vehicle while looking at Duo. "Boy," he said casually.*

"Uh," said Duo at a loss of what to say. "Congrats, I think. It's going to be …"

"Unique," Heero supplied.

"Never would've taken you for the bottom," Duo said with a smirk though he knew that Heero did prefer men and did not mind bottoming.

"Not today, I didn't," Heero said with something of a smirk and Duo groaned and rolled his eyes. Not that he didn't deserve it.

"I did not need to know that," he said though this was not the first time he was privy to Heero's sex life.L2 was where Heero would drop in to unwind, and sex was easily obtainable there. Duo knew the men Heero had been with and he had picked up from their discussions that Heero preferred his partners brown-haired, of no specific build and did not didn't discriminate between positions. Heero preferred his lovers to be close to his age but he'd never slept with anyone remotely resembling Wufei. Duo had wondered about it at first, then decided Heero was far too intelligent to fool himself by using substitutes.

Heero looked at Duo as they drove through the Preventer Headquarters main gate and said, "We're here. We'll wait in the visitors lounge until Wufei comes out – since I'm officially on sick leave, I don't go inside. If someone notices that I'm not as sick as I claim to be, there'll be problems."

They parked the car and walked over to the visitors lounge, waving at he security guard who knew Heero by sight and most likely had prior clearance to let them in. Duo seated himself in one of the comfortable chairs in the spacious room while Heero called Wufei to let him know they were there.

"I think Wufei's with his partner," Heero said after a small pause as he joined Duo in the next chair.

"The pretty blonde?" Duo perked up at the memory then stopped when he saw Heero frown. "What?"

"I don't like her," he said with a grimace. "She's always with Wufei, they work together and they have all these projects."

"You're just overreacting," Duo said soothingly, wondering if it was a sign that Heero was being hormonal. "Just you wait and see. Last time, I got the idea she likes him but he doesn't like her back .. not in the way you mean."

"I know," Heero said as he looked away, looking slightly embarrassed that he'd brought it up.

"Plus," Duo pointed out. "If Wufei ever decides to kick you out, you can always come with me and live on L2." With something akin to shock he realized he was only half joking about it and had to look away in case his eyes gave away his slip. As he shifted nervously, his bag that was resting at his feet titled and Duo smiled in relief. "Here, got you something," he said, opening the bag and reaching into it. Got it from one of the hydroponics labs off sector 5 and you'd better appreciate the trouble I had getting this through customs."

"If it's more of your condoms, I don't think I need them," Heero deadpanned and the moment was broken as Duo grinned and handed his present to Heero.

-#$%^&*()-

Reactions 3 – 03 and 04

Ever since he was a child, Quatre was aware that he was the black sheep of the family. It was not just because he was the only boy in a family of forty. He was the only one who wanted to break free from the constraints set by his family's ideals. He was the one to go off to Earth, become a Gundam pilot, the first to go zero as the other pilots would refer to it. There was something dark inside him. Quatre was conscious of the same darkness that had made him blow up a space colony, shoot Trowa into space and almost kill Heero. He had a 'core of evil', as he would call it, something so different from his exterior he was scared to reveal his true self to the world.

But not to Trowa. Trowa knew him inside out and, for some reason, had never been repulsed by his needs or his preferences. Trowa accepted him as he was, no questions asked, no demands made on him to be different, and for that, Quatre was eternally grateful. And for his part, Quatre promised himself he'd never make demands of Trowa – nothing, never.

Which was why he would not beg Trowa to do 'it' just a little harder and faster. He knew Trowa was enjoying the pace – slow and steady, using his hips to push in, never too much, keeping Quatre just on the edge. Trowa was well endowed as Quatre knew very well, and every other thrust brushed Quatre's prostate just right, made his toes curl and his back arch.

Quatre tried to make his intent known without words but Trowa did not increase his tempo, simply smiled one of his half-smiles and continued at the maddening pace, making Quatre growl in frustration, the silk scarf that served as a gag muffling his protests. He spread his legs as wide as the silver ankle manacles would let him to indicate his readiness, but failed as Trowa distracted him. Realizing that Quatre was about to reach his limit, he pulled out until only the tip of his penis was inside Quatre's passage then slammed back in – hard.

Quartre felt his eyes roll back until only the whites would be (he couldn't see…not even from the mirror above the bed) showing as his body practically lifted off the bed. He groaned as Trowa did it again then started to pound into him in short, fast thrusts that would have had him scrabbling for Trowa's back – as they usually did, only now he was handcuffed to the bedpost. As they both reached their climaxes simultaneously, Qautre lifted his hips further and further, trying to get more friction. As his world closed into a bright pinpoint of pleasure-pain, Quatre screamed into the scarf and came, his body shuddering as the last of his orgasm died down.

When he opened his eyes, Trowa was a panting dead weight on his chest and the sounds of their lovemaking still seemed to echo in the large room. Quatre lay as he was until Trowa was sufficiently recovered to undo the handcuffs and the scarf, so he could sit up and free his legs. Then, still shaking with the aftereffects of the adrenalin rush, he took off his neck tie and the half torn off shirt, throwing it away into a corner as a lost cause.

"What brought that on?" Trowa asked as he lay back on the bed, next to Quatre, his shoulder brushing the blond's. "Not that I'm complaining or anything but it's not like you to do something like this on a workday."

In reply Quatre sat up and leaned over Trowa, capturing his lips in a searing kiss. While they kissed, he slid a hand down and cupped his lover's limp penis making him gasp. "How long will it take you to recover?" he asked, his voice husky with desire. "I want to top, this time 'round."

Trowa's eyes smiled more than his mouth but he sat up and held out his hands. "Look who's talking. As if you can get it up within the next hour."

Quatre laughed lightly to show that he was amused, then shrugged free, slipping off the bed. "You want to call for it?" he asked, teasingly, referring to the elaborate game they had to decide who would get to choose which position when they made love. It had started as a small bet they had, grown more outrageous as time passed so that each would come up with intricate challenges to see who would come out the winner. The winner got to choose the position and mode of love making they would enjoy – and at times the bets were as exciting as the final act itself.

"I'll pass," said Trowa getting to his feet as well, naked and beautiful as he flexed his body to work of the kinks. Though not as broad as Heero, Trowa as definitely taller, and at almost six and a half feet in height, with his acrobatic training giving him a well sculptured look. Quatre was sure he'd never get enough of looking at such perfection though he never voiced his thoughts in case he jinxed the whole thing. "What is it?"

"I…" Quatre hesitated for a moment then looked at Trowa with a frown. "I want you to go to Earth," he said in a burst of energy.

"Heero and Wufei," Trowa said softly. "Something wrong – is this about that half-assed vid-call we got …"

"Yes," Quatre said biting his lower lip. "You know, we never did understand what they meant but I think we can't put this off any longer. I would go if I could but the next annual accounts meeting is coming up and if I skip this one…" he left the words hanging with a shrug. "It's not important, I just can't miss it – So …it's just a request… something is about to go wrong."

"Is this the heart of space speaking?" Trowa asked, in all seriousness.

"Something like that," Quatre agreed as he walked to the wall terminal and switched it on. "I kept on feeling something was off but it seems the Heart of space is not that effective when I'm in my administrative mode … then I got this …"

He gestured towards the screen and Trowa frowned at the small file which showed up on the desktop. Through he did not use computers as much as Quatre did, at least not these days, he was up to date and he could see at a glance from the information that it was a a one-minute recording which had been sent as a mail attachment. "Can I play it?" Trowa asked, in case it was a virus of some sort.

"Go ahead," Quatre said and though the room was not cold, he hugged his shoulders, an indication that he was nervous.

Trowa put a hand around Quatre's shoulder, pulling him closer before hitting the play button. Instantly a full screen video started to play and he froze. The seventeen inch wall mounted screen now displayed a hand with three metal claws instead of fingers. The voice accompanying the limb was low and distorted. "How's Heero?" the voice inquired and then the fingers opened and snapped shut with a click. Then again the fingers opened. "Tell him to be careful, that the …" The rest of the video ran smoothly but the sound did not come back on and after watching the silent metal fingers open and close, Trowa reached forward and switched off the wall terminal.

"Did you trace that?" he asked.

"Can't," Quatre said looking down. "It came through one of those open communication lines I have for business partners. The security in that is never high and … it's already several days old."

"It might not be Dr. J," Trowa said, his mind reeling.

"Does it matter?" Quatre inquired dully. "The warning is clear enough and they know – whoever they are – that we're connected to the Gundam project."

"But why you?" Trowa asked aloud. "Why not send the message to Heero directly?"

"Because I'm the one who's easiest to find," Quatre pointed out. "While the others aren't exactly trying to hide, I'm the one in the limelight 24/7."

"But why now?" Trowa protested, not liking the idea that their quiet lives were, once again, about to be disrupted.

"Exactly," Quatre said with a sad smile. "I think it's about Heero – it's always about Heero."

"I'll go," Trowa said decisively. "But will you be safe here?"

"Something tells me that you are needed there, rather than here," Quatre told him. "I'll step up security and watch my back. I can take care of myself and at the moment, I don't think I'm a target."

"Tomorrow," Trowa said, probably realizing that Quatre had anticipated his reaction and had initiated the earlier bout of lovemaking as a form of thanks for going and a preparation for the time they were going to spend separated.

"There's something else," Quatre said as he walked back to the bed. He sat on the edge and looked at Trowa expectantly until his lover joined him.

"What is it?" Trowa asked as he sat carefully.

"It's about…" Quatre looked away then back at his lover. When they had first become lovers they had decided that they did not need variety, as in, the addition of another person. Not even once. But the last time they had been on Earth he had watched Trowa fuss over Wufei, almost mothering him, and understood something. While Quatre felt jealous at the thought of Trowa being with someone else, he did not mind if that someone was one of 'them'.

"What is it?" Trowa prompted.

"Duo," Quatre said softly. "I have a small arrangement with the L4 spaceport and they let me know of the comings and goings of certain people. Anyway, from what they tell me, Hilde and the two kids came to visit her parents."

"Duo's on Earth," Trowa said, looking up.

"I think you'll have to keep an eye on him as well," Quatre said. "Call it instinct."

"Fine," Trowa agreed easily. "Now…" he turned towards Quatre and handed him the lube. "You'd better make sure I can remember you until you come to Earth.

- !#$%^&&**() -

Lady Une was not the most patient of people but she did know enough to get along with those who worked under her command. But sometimes, she just wished she'd taken up an alternate career like writing smutty romances in a sea side cottage away from all this. She looked up, pushed up her glasses and glared at Wufei who was being more obnoxious than usual.

"What do you mean he can't Mr. Chang?" she said slowly.

"Just that," Wufei said without batting an eyelid. "I don't want to go on an undercover mission with Heero anyway. This is my find so it should be me …"

"I'm not going to let you go undercover without backup for god knows how long …" Lady Uue snarled.

"I'll go," Sharine spoke up but Lady Une dismissed her with a wave of her hand.

"It's a mercenary camp and unlike in those B-grade movies where you have gun totting females, this is composed of males and males only and there's no way you can…" Sharine sank back into her chair looking murderous mumbling about sexist mercenaries and dumb males in general. While Lady Une agreed with the idea wholeheartedly it seemed inappropriate to voice her thoughts so she glared at Wufei instead. "What's wrong with Heero?"

"He's sick," Wufei answered swiftly.

"Sick," Lady Une did not hide her disbelief. "Heero Yuy? _The_ Heero Yuy? What did he do? Loose a body part?"

"No," Wufei seemed to hesitate. "He's just … sick."

"With what, malaria?" Lady Une asked dryly. Sharine looked puzzled as she stared at Wufei. From her reaction, Sharine did not seem to be aware of it either. "Where is he?" she asked instead.

"At my apartment," Wufei replied after a brief hesitation.

"His file says indefinite sick leave and is approved by Sally," Lady Une observed. "While I'm aware he's only a part timer and not under any constraints to take up any mission, since he is here on Earth, he might as well accompany you on this one. Quite frankly, I don't see anyone else who is better qualified to back you."

Wufei remained silent making Lady Une want to smash his head in. She looked at the file again and then grimaced. Sally Po, though not her friend, was a trusted associate and here she was stonewalling her. Heero Yuy's file said the guy was as healthy as a proverbial horse, though why anyone thought horses were healthy was beyond her, while at the same time indicated he was dying painfully of various medical conditions which required no treatment other than some off time.

She was just about to ask for a clarification when the inter-com buzzed and her secretary, a former OZ solider said, "There is a Mr. Maxwell and Mr. Yuy who has just driven through to the visitors area. Please confirm that they are guests of Preventer Chang."

Lady Une saw Wufei blanch even as she snapped on the camera for the visitors' lounge where the two former pilots were. She watched as Heero walked up to the wall-com, probably to inform Wufei of their arrival and then walked back to where Maxwell was seated.

Lady Une was used to taking in information from camera feeds and the Preventer Headquarters' had better than average cams with wide screen feeds. Maxwell looked the same. In fact, he looked as if he was still sixteen apart from a strand of silver in his braid. She dismissed Maxwell for the time being and turned her attention to Heero and stared.

Yuy was not a sloppy dresser but now he seemed to have let himself go. "Has he put on weight?" she said to Wufei before she could help it. "And why is he wearing his shirt untucked? – he's turning into a regular slob."

Sharine snickered while Wufei simply paled and did not answer. Lady Une watched Yuy sit on the chair carefully, almost slumping into it, sliding down until the back of his neck was pressed against the chair, then seemed to find difficulty in keeping his legs still. He seemed to try crossing them, then uncrossed them and finally …

"Why is he fidgeting?" she asked aloud. "What exactly is wrong with him?"

"Is that all?" Wufei asked as he sat up abruptly and Lady Une scowled at the rude gesture.

"No, it's not," Lady Une said derisively. "Call them both up. I want to know what is wrong with Mr. Yuy and Mr. Maxwell can act as your back up if nothing else."

"No," Wufei said violently. "That is out of the question. Duo has a family and kids. He's not with us anymore…"

"He used to be a Preventer?" Sharine said looking puzzled and Lady Une realized the girl, thought Wufei's partner was not privy to his past. She had assumed Sharine and Wufei to be – or as office gossip went, had been an item and they probably had a few pillow talks, so to speak.

Not that she approved of work place relationships, why she and Mr. Traize had had a proper relationship – not a word out of place. And it was an honor to look after his daughter as if she was her own … but still, it showed that Wufei did not trust anyone.

"He used to be an informer," Wufei said smoothly to his partner. "Duo is the one who provided the infor from the sector scans – he's a Sweeper so he's got access to a lot of things."

"Which is exactly why they should come up," said Lady Une. "Mr. Maxwell can go with you to the…"

"I refuse," said Wufei standing up. "Duo just came to Earth, he's tired and in no mood for business. I'm leaving, this conversation is over."

"Fine," Lady Une said, ignoring the blatantly rude behavior, having gotten used to it. "You've got guests so you might as well go. But get back to me as soon as you get word of the drop location."

Wufei nodded then walked out, holding the door open for Sharine who was already demanding something from him then turned her attention back to the screen. On screen, Maxwell was giving something to Yuy in a container which Yuy seemed to regard with suspicion.

Lady Une sighed and then picked up her phone. "Dr. Sally Po, can you come up to my office. It's regarding a patient of yours, Heero Yuy."


	3. Chapter 3

Reaction 3 since I put the pervious parts 2gether.

Wufei concentrated on keeping his head down and strapping on his shoulder holster – which he had taken off before entering Lady Une's office – while Sharine did a nervous jig in front of the coffee machine. When the staff room had cleared enough, she looked at him and grimaced. "What was that all about?"

Wufei, who had been expecting that question earlier, sighed, pretending to be annoyed as he stood up. "Look, Heero is waiting outside with Duo and I don't have the time to…"

"I thought he was dying of an incurable disease," Sharine said sarcastically as Wufei flushed guilty.

"It's none of your…"

"It is if it means you're going into some undercover mission without backup," Sharine shot back sharply.

"I never agreed to it," Wufei started to protest as his partner laughed.

"You think I'm stupid," she said with a wry grin. "You're the same person who rode his bike through the Windsgate mansion – I know what you're going to do." She stalked up to him until she was standing right in his personal space and pushed her palm against his chest in a familiar gesture. "You're going to the scouting point alone and then you're going to join these people undercover. You're going, whether you have a partner or not, am I right?"

"I have to go," Wufei replied, frustrated.

"I take it this is not because someone tried to kill you while you were recovering from the eye operation." Wufei knew that his partner already understood his reasons.

"They're using Preventer issue guns. They're hijacking our shipments and someone on the inside is giving them information. I need to find that leak," Wufei told her bluntly.

"There's got to be another way," Sharine told him before shutting up. "Ok, I can't believe I said that," she said, lips twitching. "It sounded like a line from some cheesy soap opera."

"You still watch those?" Wufei said making a face, hoping that was the end of the previous subject.

"As if I had anything better to do when I get home," she replied, making a face. "So, what gives, partner? What's wrong with your lover-boy?"

Wufei wished he could roll his eyes. Sharine never called Heero by name if she could help it and Heero called her by various names, none of which was ever the correct one. It was seriously getting old. "Nothing," Wufei said automatically, taken aback by the change of tone. "Absolutely nothing."

"Then is it all right for me to tell him that you're going on a very, very dangerous mission all alone because you don't have a backup?" she asked, poking a finger into his chest insistently. "It'll be your toy-boy's fault if something happens to you."

"You can't tell him," Wufei said, feeling slightly panicked, knowing that Sharine had learned too much from him about direct action.

"Then just tell me what's wrong with him," Sharine told Wufei. "It'll be just the two of us – I won't tell anyone, you know I won't."

Wufei did not have to question her loyalty. "He's pregnant," he told Sharine.

There was a snort as she gave him an exasperated look. "Really," she said, looking amused. "I'm serious."

"So am I," Wufei told her.

"Really, come on, Wufei, what is it?"

"I just told you," he said grimly.

"No you didn't."

"Yes, I did."

"You're not being funny," Sharine said, looking slightly annoyed and equally hurt. "I thought you did trust me."

Wufei knew from experience that getting her to believe it was going to be difficult when he himself'd had a hard time accepting the truth. He picked up his laptop and began to decrypt the file which contained all of Heero's medical records. It included the latest scans, blood works and geno-reports. He brought them up to the screen then thrust the screen into his partner's face. "There, see," he said forcefully.

There was a long silence as she took the laptop from his grasp and looked at it carefully. Then she looked at it more intently and as she scrolled down, Wufei could see her face loosing color. It was as if she'd been sucked dry all of a sudden. From the way her fingers closed on the laptop tightly, he could see that she was beyond shocked, though he could not imagine why. Slowly, she lifted her head, handed back the laptop, and he could see that her lips were dry and pale as well. "Congratulations," she said carefully, then brushed past him into the women's rest room, leaving him wondering what he had done wrong.

Taking a deep breath, Wufei walked up to the door which had a "Keep out – girls only" sign on it and knocked on it carefully. "Sharine," he called. "Are you all right?"

There was no reply so he took another deep breath, just in case the air inside was breathable to women only, and pulled open the door and walked in. That is, he took a tentative step in, ready to back down at the first sight on – anything. What he did not expect was to walk smack into an ample chest and choke on the overpowering smell of perfume. The female tittered on high heels and abruptly stopped as Wufei held her up. He drew back swiftly, holding onto the other person who was definitely not Sharine, looked at her then drew back as if stung.

"Miss. Une," he said through gritted teeth and looked away so he would not meet her eyes.

Mariemeia Khushrenada-Barton-Une, as confused as her name suggested and on the verge of leaving her teenage years behind, was showing all the traits of a spoiled upbringing. Lady Une, despite all her administrative and battle-field skills, was not the best person to look after a budding psychotic teenager. Wufei knew that Lady Une barely had time juggling world peace and the Preventers to look after a child, especially one as special as Mariemeia whose other guardian happened to be Relena Peacecraft, who was sure that her slap across the girls' face at the end of the war had cured her of everything, including the common cold.

"Preventer Chang," her voice was laced with contempt. Mariemeia did not like him and made no pretense of it.

Wufei bowed and stepped aside to let her pass, his eyes downcast so he would not have to look into the face he did not want to look. Though he had killed countless people, he did not usually meet their daughters on a daily basis. He found out that he was unable to look at her directly, and she seemed to enjoy in his visible guilt.

"I'm sorry," he said softly. "I did not think this place was occupied by anyone else."

"Perfectly all right," she said in a loud voice. "I was just leaving to meet mother." Wufei remained quiet, at a loss of anything to say. "I couldn't help but overhear," she paused and looked at him. "Heero Yuy is really sick?"

"Yes," said Wufei desperately searching for an excuse.

"With what?" Mariemeia said cattishly. "Leprosy?" She did not like the person who had shot down the protective bunker in order to save Relena. Wufei thought that she was frankly afraid of Heero though she did not want to admit it.

"Actually…" Wufei said groping for a convenient illness when the teenager dismissed him as irrelevant.

"It's all right," she said, stepping past him. "I don't really want to know. I should be going – otherwise I'll be late for my manicure appointment. It was nice meeting you, Preventer Chang. Next time try not to be gender confused about which toilet to use."

Wufei watched her go with narrowed eyes, eyeing the too-short skirt and too-transparent top, now that her back was turned to him.

"I've heard of tongue tied men but really, what do you have against the girl?" Shrine asked from inside the toilet, reminding Wufei of his real reason for venturing into forbidden territory.

"Nothing," he said a little too swiftly. "What makes you think that I do?"

"You won't even look at her," his partner said, walking to the sink and splashing water on her face. "Was it something she did? I know she's difficult to get along with."

"No," Wufei shook his head slowly. "It was something I did. Long time ago."

"Is this something I need to know?" Sharine said dryly. "You didn't get her pregnant, too, did you?"

"Hardly," Wufei said, coming back to reality and blushing furiously. "Are you all right? You left so abruptly…"

"I'm fine," Sharine told him with a wave of her hand. "Go. Weren't you desperate to meet your friend just now? The one with the long hair."

"Duo," Wufei could feel a faint smile threaten as he thought of the man in question. "I think you've met him briefly when I was recovering from the surgery…"

"I remember," Sharine said with faint frown. "He had black teeth then."

"Would you like to come out and meet him?" Wufei offered though he really did not feel like dragging her within five feet of Heero.

"I'll pass," Sharine said firmly. "Just go … don't let me hold you back."

"But something is bothering you…"

"We'll discuss it later."

Wufei turned to go and then hesitated. "What I said about Heero's condition…"

"What condition?" Sharine said with a blank look and Wufei nodded his thanks.

- - #$%^&*()- - - -

Duo yawned then grimaced. "Damn," he said. "Spaceship lag is just as bad as jet lag."

"Wufei will be out soon," Heero said apologetically. "I should have taken you home straight off not…"

"Nah," said Duo with a wave of his hand. "I'd much rather we all go home together. How's his eyes anyway – any problems? Can spot a sharpshooter a mile away now?"

"He's fine," Heero said with a small smile that was oddly contemplative. "He just needs to keep his observations about me putting on weight to himself.

Just as Duo was about think up an excuse to get that expression off his friend's face, the door leading into the Preventer building with the big official sign, "**Do not Enter, Preventers only**" swung open and Wufei walked out. '_Damn_,' Duo thought a tad wistfully. '_I think I see what Heero sees in him_.'

Wufei was in his Preventer uniform, the top two buttons of his shirt undone so his sweat-soaked, white undershirt was apparent and his hair escaping his pony tail – still looked better than most people would after hours of prepping. As Duo got to his feet slowly, Wufei's face split into a welcoming smile and he was engulfed in a warm hug before he was able to find his feet properly. "Duo, it's nice to see you,"

Duo hugged his friend back equally enthusiastically, feeling the slender body press against him, wondering how someone so small could be so strong. As if in answer to his thought, Wufei spoke, a little muffled, "Have you grown taller?"

Duo gave a small laugh and ruffled the hair of his friend. "You've just gotten shorter," he said. "It's gravity … grabbed you and makes you shorter."

Wufei pulled back, making a face. "Does that make me the shortest one?" he said sounding more amused than annoyed. Duo couldn't help laughing – he, Heero and Wufei had become close friends during their lock up at the OZ cell on Moon, and for some reason, Duo knew that next to Heero, Wufei was the pilot he felt the closest to. He leaned forward and whispered, confidentially, into Wufei's ear, "I'm wearing two inch platform boots," and watched his friend burst out laughing.

He flung an arm around Wufei's shoulder, drawing him closer. "Isn't Heero feeding you properly, you're so skinny?"

Wufei rolled his eyes, probably used to comments about his slender form, and then reached around and picked up Duo's braid for a closer look. "Gray hair, Maxwell," he said in a serious tone. "Getting old, are we?"

"A small accident at one of the new stations … almost got me scalped," Duo explained, familiar with the question. "When my hair grew back, it was silver there. Adds to my character, don't you say?"

"Oh, yes," Wufei said with a smile. "Some character. By the way, I'm sorry I couldn't meet you at the spaceport. Did Heero treat you ok?"

Duo sighed as Heero joined him from the other side and gave his shoulder a brief rub before looking at Wufei. "Shall we get going?" he asked.

"Might as well," said Wufei with a frown. "Lady Une is getting curious as to why someone who's on sick leave is showing up here."

"Oh," Heero seemed a little taken aback then gave a wry smile. "I thought nothing of import for me so it was all right. I don't come in for work even when I'm not on sick leave unless there's something major for me to handle."

"Yes." To Duo's professional eye, it looked as if Wufei was trying to brush off something important with an noncommittal shrug. "But you are Heero Yuy and you've never been sick before."

"Hn," said Heero, working his fingers in through the narrow opening of the container.

"What exactly is that?" Wufei asked slowly, as if afraid to know the answer.

"Pickle," Heero replied. "Something pickled … Duo got it for me." He licked his fingers thoughtfully, "Lime I think, or maybe dill." He held out the container to Wufei who looked at it suspiciously but did not take it.

"You really are overdoing it," Wufei said a little dryly. "This being pregnant thing of yours."

Heero scowled at that, thoughtfully picked out another pickle and popped it into his mouth. "It's your fault," he said blandly. "You never get me anything like this."

"Duo's straight," Wufei answered back. "He's used to dealing with women." Then he smiled, leaned forward quickly and placed a peck on Heero's cheek to show that he did not mean any harm by that comment. "Just don't complain at night if that gives you heart burn."

Duo realized with a sort of shock that they were bantering – the way Wufei made fun of Heero's pregnancy and his easy acceptance of it – they were behaving like a married couple and it was making him feel nostalgic about his own relationship with Hilde. It had been rather nice in the beginning before they'd discovered that they were just too different and once the honeymoon phase was over, they fought like cats and dogs. It was not to say they didn't have anything in common, just that they were two people with strong personalities that just didn't mesh. Add to the fact Hilde was still female enough to want a new dress while Duo kept on shoveling all their earnings back into the orphanage…

"You must be tired if you're spacing out," Heero said, steering Duo towards the door. "Let's go … Wufei, you coming with us or on the bike?"

"I'll come with you," Wufei said easily. "The bike should be safe in the garage for a day. I'll pick it up tomorrow – we just have to stop on the way and pick up a few things for lunch. Is that ok?"

Duo nodded as Heero opened the passenger door for him. "Wufei can sit in the back," he said when Duo started to protest. "You get the seat of honor …"

Wufei slid into the backseat wordlessly and leaned forward so his chin rested on the back of Duo's seat. As Heero drove through the gate, he leaned forward and whispered into Duo's ear, "We need to talk."

- #$%^&*( -

Despite Heero's misgivings about Wufei's far too cheerful mood, Wufei made them all lunch. It consisted of chicken soup with chopped carrots and grated cheese, home made sandwiches made from freshly baked bread from a small family-run bakery down the road, and cookies from the same place, which Duo devoured with enthusiasm. Heero decided that Hilde probably did not cook very often and yes, Wufei's meals were much better than what they got out of takeaway cartons, no matter how simply put together.

It did not help that throughout lunch, Duo came up with a lot of bread jokes, which, he said, referred to the sandwiches, but seemed to end with 'bun in the oven' making Heero feel slightly self-conscious. It did not, however, diminish his appetite and he was somewhat grateful that neither Wufei nor Duo mentioned just how much he was eating.

After lunch, they sat around sleepily until Duo yawned and announced he was going to bed if Wufei and Heero had remembered to change the sheets recently and if there weren't any odd bodily fluids on it.

"You're thinking of Quatre and Trowa," Heero said blandly and enjoyed the moment of surprise in Wufei's face.

Duo simply shrugged, pulled at the t-shirt he had borrowed from Wufei, and made his way to the bedroom, shouting, "Feel free to join me if you want."

Wufei sat next to Heero for a moment, playing absentmindedly with the hem of his shirt before reaching forward and burying his face in Heero's shoulder. "You know we should ask him about Hilde, right?" he said softly.

"They've got problems," Heero said as he brought up a hand to brush his lover's hair lightly out of his face. "We can't ask him about personal problems with an outsider." If Duo, by some accident, had been living together with one of the other Gundam pilots, Heero would not have hesitated to ask questions about his family life but with Hilde it was different.

"Then what about the scar on his head?" Wufei said softly. "It's a laser burn. Only those cause hair to grow back like that."

"It could have been a lighting strike or a high voltage short circuit since it's the colonies," Heero said, though he did not believe it either. Plus, Duo was not Heero Yuy, such an accident would most likely kill him. "But Duo never lies and he did say it was an accident."

"Could also be sudden aging process in a part of his scalp," Wufei said dryly. "You want to…" He stopped frowning as the doorbell rang and Heero stiffened as well. "Ill get it," said Wufei getting to his feet swiftly and his hand drifted down to his empty holster before looking at Heero.

Heero did not have any weapons on him apart from a letter opener nearby, which he could use as a throwing knife if needed but not very proficiently but he nodded. Wufei jerked open the door then stared at the newcomer for a moment. From the way his shoulders stiffened, it did not seem to be a welcomed intrusion. But when Wufei spoke his voice friendly enough. "Sharine," he said. "What is it?"

"Can I come in?" the female voice made Heero want to growl though he bit back the impulse. "We can hardly discuss this in the hallway."

"Is this about earlier?" Wufei asked without moving aside.

"No, this is about the scouting party." The voice was sharper. "I'm sorry to intrude but really this is important. I know you have a visitor so…"

"Come in," Wufei said, pushing open the door revealing his partner to Heero for the first time that day. "Duo is sleeping."

"I'm not," said Duo from the entrance of the bedroom. "But I can pretend to if you want me to."

"No," said Wufei after the small hesitation. "I think you might as well stay because this concerns the sector scans you provided."

"Should _I_ go and pretend to be sleeping?" Heero said sarcastically.

"Might as well," Sharine said looking right at him. "Considering your condition."

Heero felt as if someone had punched him in the stomach. His hand clamped over the non-too-visible bulge at his midriff protectively as he looked at Wufei in disbelief. "You told her?"

"I had to," Wufei said, looking more relaxed than he should have in the situation. "It wasn't like I had a choice.

"How could you?" Heero hissed, outraged.

"Guys," said Duo, walking in looking sleepy, scratching his belly absentmindedly. "Think we can talk this over in a civilized manner … say sitting down?"

"Can't," Wufei's blonde seemed to have found her voice at the sight of Duo. "There is a scouting party in the old Empire building in another half hour. If we go there, we might be able to …"

"I'll go," Wufei said firmly. "You … uh… stay here and explain the situation to Heero and Duo."

"What!" The blond screeched, much to Heero's amusement. Then he realized Wufei intended to leave this annoying female in their apartment, in his care, and his amusement turned into horror.


	4. Chapter 4

Part 4

Heero stared at Sharine.

Sharine stared at Heero.

Duo stared at both of them for a while before sighing. In his mind, he cursed Wufei for bolting out with his shoes in hand leaving Duo to deal with such an explosive situation. Damn Wufei – he was seriously going to have to grovel to get out of this one. Oh, he was going to kick that skinny Chinese ass all the way to the Mars colony if he had a choice.

He looked at the two, still glaring at each other so pointedly and groaned. "I'm Duo..." he said holding out a hand to the blonde, forcing her to break eye contact with Heero. "Duo Maxwell – nice to meet you."

"Sharine …Walters," she said out of politeness taking his hand. Her grip was firm and her palm was calloused from weapon handling. He did not let go of her hand but rather used it to draw her into the room and towards the sofa.

"Take a seat," he said as Heero glared at Duo instead now as if he'd betrayed them to the White Fang. "Would you care for a drink?"

Sharine looked like someone who was sure she had to leave but did not want to incase her legs fell off on the way out. She sat down reluctantly in the sofa and Heero, after what seemed to be an hour of contemplation, seated himself next to her on the other corner as if to show that he did not care for her presence. "No, thank you," Sharine's voice was more in control as she looked at Duo. "I … uh… you were the one who gave us the information."

"Perhaps you can explain to us the situation," Duo said seating himself in the opposite seat so he was facing the two and trying to act like the adult in the room. "What did Wufei mean by a scouting party and what does this have to do with me?"

"Well," said Sharine looking at him doubtfully.

"Don't worry," said Duo reaching for his id bracelet. "I've got clearance from the Preventers." He handed it over to her waited for her to confirm, knowing his level of clearance was higher than hers by several levels. While he was not an active member, Lady Une knew how to treat Gundam pilots with the respect they deserved. It after all, did not hurt to keep someone who could be called for live action at a moments' notice in Lady Une's back pocket, so to speak. Sharine looked more puzzled than impressed by his clearance data, as if wondering whom exactly he was. After all, with his braid half undone, wearing a comfortable but ratty t-shirt and loose shorts, Duo probably did not look like any Preventer she'd come into contact with.

"Uh, ok," she sounded even unsure. Then she nodded as if making up her mind and reached for her laptop. Switching it on*, she called up the data and started to give them only the bare facts. "Remember the time Wufei got attacked, right after the eye surgery …" she looked at Heero then continued hurriedly before he could speak. "Well, we knew they used Preventer issue guns which came from a stolen shipment from L4."

"Ah," nodded Duo. "This is where I came in. You asked me to carry out a sweep of all possible vessels around that time and I came up with a list of possible suspects."

"You never told me that," Heero told Duo accusingly.

"I ...uh… thought you knew," Duo said hesitantly.

"It was a need to know operation," Sharine told Heero smartly. "And Preventer Chang most likely decided _you_ did not need to know."

"I see," Heero said carefully and Duo could see Wufei was in for a world of pain – or at least a week on the floor.

"But all I gave you was list of names," Duo said hastily you diffuse the tension in the room. "Did you make anything of it?" They obviously had but Duo had to keep them talking, even at the expense of sounding like an idiot.

"We narrowed it down to five possible suspects and form there kept tab of their activities until we could come to a definite conclusion," Sharine continued in a business like voice. "And we came across a possible ship whose owner also runs a small firm on Earth. The sort of group that requires people who are no too squirmy about doing anything and everything."

"They're the scouting party," Heero concluded. "They must come to a city like this from time to time, spread the word through the underground channel that they are looking for men, say ex-cons or something similar and then sort through the turnout for possible recruits."

"Y…se," Sharine seemed surprised by Heero's leap of logic but Duo was used to it and nodded.

"So, Wufei is trying to get recruited," Heero said in a dangerously low tone. "Alone?"

"He's the only possible male we've got to send undercover," Sharine said, as if protesting at the unspoken accusation that she'd deserted her partner. "He's the only one without a war record of any sort."

"Hn."

"Lady Une was going to send you as well but it turns out you can't." she added waspishly.

"Hn."

"It's not as if I could go," Sharine said a little defensively, perhaps feeling somewhat intimidated by Heero's vague responses. Duo grinned to himself – if she was trying to get him to react she was mistaken.

"He didn't tell me that," said Heero absentmindedly reaching for a jar of half eaten pickles off the coffee table in the middle. He pulled one out and then thoughtfully offered the jar to Sharine was staring at him as if he'd grown an extra head. "Pickles?"

Sharine's hand was small so it fitted through the narrow opening easily – and pulled out a decent sized pickle which she popped into her mouth with a look of someone going through an extreme challenge. She looked Heero, or more specifically at his stomach which was more obvious when he was sitting down and his t-shirt was pulled against him.

Heero glanced down at himself, following her line of sight then moved back slightly as if annoyed. Duo was not sure if he should interfere or not but decided to speak – it always distracted people from the obvious.

"So," he said getting up. "Do you want anything to go with the pickles."

"Where are you going to have the baby," Sharine asked bluntly. "You can't stay here for long – you'll draw too much attention even if Sally is your doctor. Preventer hospital wing is heavily guarded and if you check in as a patient there everyone from Une to the office coffee maker would know."

"I was thinking maybe Heero and Wufei can come to L2," Duo said. "Lay low for a while – not one asked anyone anything there. It's a sort of unwritten law

"Or with Trowa –" Heero said injected.

"Trowa…?"

"Friend of ours," Duo explained. "In a circus."

"Well, I suppose you'd fit quiet well next to the bearded lady," Sharine said cattily to Heero and Duo sighed. They had been getting on so well.

~!#$%^&*()_+~

Wufei was sure there was an insane female somewhere writing out his life story. Probably grinning with glee as he was humiliated over and over again. After all, the situation he was in was so similar to what is found in those cheap novels he had come across where the impossible seemed to happen.

On second thought he decided to be pleased by the thoroughness of the people he had met. It still did not ease his bad mood, his humiliation nor the knowledge that he had to face Heero. He stepped off the bus, waiting until it had pulled away before crossing the street and getting into the elevator. He got off on the correct floor, considered going to office before deciding that Chang Wufei was anything but a coward.

This did not stop him from listening carefully outside the door for a couple of seconds before knocking on it. He had a spare key on him and he could have used it but he did not feel like barging in on what sounded like an animated discussion about orphanages between Duo and Sharine. Wufei cringed mentally – his partner was there as well he was in no position to deal with her on the top of getting back into Heero's good books

"It's me," he said a shade uncomfortably to Duo who peered out inquisitively. "I … uh…."

"Oh, goody," said Duo giving him a wide grin bordering on maniacal. "Get your ass in here and let the fireworks being. That's what Chinese are famous for, right?" Wufei cringed as Duo hauled him into the room and practically threw him into the sofa while he was still trying to toe off his sneakers. He half sat, half tripped into the sofa between Heero and Sharine, looked at them both and swallowed hard.

"Look," he said a little slowly. "Sorry for leaving abruptly and…"

"What happened?" Heero asked.

"Did you make contact?" Sharine demanded in tandem.

"They said they'll let me know with a week or so," Wufei replied. "I'll have a full report on your desk by tomorrow noon."

Sharine looked put off by the dismissal. "Look, I didn't hang around here for the free pickles you know," she protested. "I want to know all the details about the meeting and…"

"Not now," Wufei said firmly. He had been thinking it over as he'd ridden the bus home and knew that if he did not deal with Heero straight off, he would regret it later. True, his job was important but he also knew that with a week to prepare for the next meet, if he had made the cut , he did not have to deal with it immediately. But Heero, his pregnant boyfriend, probably needed to be dealt with as soon as possible.

"But…" Sharine said protesting.

"Cut him some slack," Duo snapped before she could continue. "You know you've been verbally pinching Heero for sometime now and Wufei needs to deal with it. Whatever it is can wait until tomorrow. Now that he's home safely, why don't you go home as well."

Sharine scowled and opened her mouth as if to protest again.

"I'm not a gentleman," Duo said in a low voice. "And you know what, despite your sharp tongue, I really like you so don't make me throw you out."

Sharine got up, her face red with embarrassment and anger at the prospect of being thrown out then looked at Wufei as if waiting for him to either defend or oppose her.

"I'm sorry," Wufei told her, meaning it. "But at the moment there are a few things I need to air out with Heero and …"

She nodded, looked at Heero who was sitting as still as a rock on the sofa, blankly looking at the wall, a good indication he was angry and then sighed. "See you all round, I guess," she said tonelessly and then walked to the door to put on her shoes.

After she had gone, Duo locked the door and looked at Wufei with a grimace. "Felt bad about that," he said. "She's an ok kid, a little forceful but reminds me a little of Hilde."

"Duo," Wufei said in exasperation, feeling bad over the mess. "I'm sorry…"

"Hey, I'll deal with that tomorrow," Duo said casually. "Let me just pick up my bag and I'll be on my way."

"You're leaving?' Wufei asked getting to his feet.

"Can't stay here, you and Heero need breathing space so I'll be in the way," Duo said with a smile that looked slightly strained

"Stay," Heero said firmly, still avoiding Wufei's gaze.

"Duo," Wufei said moving towards his friend. "You just got here and we didn't even get time to catch up."

"I'm here for a bit," Duo said with a shrug. "We'll have time to catch up later."

"Where're you going?" Heero asked sounding curious.

"I've got the access card to Winner penthouse suit," Duo said with a wink. "Quatre said I could stay there when ever I'm in town. It's got this sunken hot water Jacuzzi in the middle and I can't wait to try it out."

"You could crash with us for the night," Wufei said feeling bad about the whole thing. The penthouse suit was a huge

"I'm going to turn down the offer for the threesome," Duo said still collecting his stuff and putting them in the bag. "Maybe next time…"

"Duo," Wufei walked up to his friend and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Stay for dinner and then we'll drop you off in the car. Please…"

Duo straightened up and looked him in the eye. "You sure I won't get in the way?"

"Of course not," Wufei said immediately. "Sharine is my partner, you're family," and was glad to see Duo's eye light up at that. "I also want to tell you about the meet today and get your opinion."

"You cooking?" Duo asked with a smile.

"Of course," said Wufei nodding empathically. "Just give me five to shower and change." He looked at Heero who was still seated, looking disinterested by the whole proceeding. "Give me another ten."

He walked over to Heero and sat carefully next to him on the sofa and sighed. "I've been a prick again, haven't I?"

One thing about Heero was he did not hold back nor bottle things up. He gave his opinion of people straight off which made arguments so much easier and at the same time had an a harsh edge which made the person on the receiving end wince.

"You made me look like a fool in front of your partner," Heero said crisply as if reciting a security detail. "I was unaware of the missions you were undertaking and the dangers you were facing. While I understand that I do not need to be updated on all your movements, when a mission has a direct bearing to me, you have no right to withhold vital information."

Wufei looked down at his lap where his hands are clenched tightly into fists, unable look at Heero.

"While I'm not that well versed in the art of having a relationship, I'm aware that we also have a working partnership that requires you to inform me of certain things. Unless you feel that I'm a liability or that my judgment is impaired …"

"No," Wufei said sharply.

"Or if you wish for me to leave," Heero continued softly.

Wufei's heart seemed to spasm at that and he looked up sharply. "You don't mean that," he said, almost a whisper.

"Do you wish for me to leave?" Heero asked. "You're the one who's holding back information from me. Subterfuge was never you strong point and this must be straining you as well."

"You're just saying that you get back at me," Wufei said weakly. Even as he said that he knew that while the countless women he had dated might have sprouted something like that to hurt him, Heero was hardly likely to do that our of revenge.

"I'm not," said Heero, looking down, letting his right hand rest of him abdomen slowly. "I don't want you to stick with me out of some misguided sense of justice now that I'm pregnant."

"Isn't that a little melodramatic," Duo suddenly spoke up. "Well done Heero, you've studied the finer points of rubbing Wu's nose in it but aren't you going a little too far?"

Wufei whipped his head around and stared at his friend who was looking at them intently.

"Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut and go do something interesting like …"

"No," said Wufei waving a hand towards Duo. "Sit down, like I said you're family and we both value your opinion."

"Thank you for the vote of confidence," Duo said a tad sarcastically as he sat down in the chair and nodded at Heero. "You don't mean you're going to leave that easily, are you?" he asked. "After all the trouble you went through to win him, it's a wise to give up so easily."

Heero looked up at their long haired companion and shook his head. "I don't want to be useless," he said firmly. "We usually discard things we don't need anymore."

"That's big from a guy who's always trying to protect me," Wufei snapped back. "What I tried to do was protect you the same way to tried to do for me." He looked at Heero straight in the eye. "I'm not cutting you out of the loop - I'm just trying hard not to get you riled up over things you can do anything about. You can't go on any active missions in your current state so I didn't think it right to worry you."

"And speaking of my current state," Heero said angrily. "Did you have to tell her about it?"

"Yes," Wufei said. "I had to tell her why you weren't there to cover my ass, so to speak."

"She…" Heero started.

"Understandably, she was a little mean about it," Duo said quietly from his seat.

"Understandably," Heero said sounding disbelieving.

"She's jealous," Duo said. "She probably wishes she's the one who's having Wufei's kid." Wufie felt himself blushing at that. "And I'm jealous too," Duo said without missing a beat. "It's ironic that you two, the people who least want a child should get that chance while me and Hilde…"

Wufei was feeling uncomfortable about the whole thing and wished Duo had not mentioned it so casual a voice.

Heero looked up at Wufei, probably feeling just as uncomfortable and scowled. "You did promise dinner, didn't you?"

"That's it," Duo asked looking surprised. "Argument over."

"Not by a long shot," Wufei said with a grimace. "It's time out I think."

"So dinner?" Duo asked with a grin.

"And we'll go over today's activities together," Wufei said with a nod. "I need some unbiased opinions on today's encounter." He looked squarely at Heero. "Especially yours."

~!#$%^&*()

"For starters, I was led from the pickup place to another in a small beaten up car to a remote location," Wufei said as he watched Heero spear another piece of meat. "Blind folded."

"Any idea where?" Duo asked as he called up the city-map on the lap top.

"Not really," Wufei said pointing out a possible location. "It was a warehouse, and well, there are far too many of those here."

"How many people?" Heero asked finally contributing to the conversation once he'd finished eating.

"Four or five," Wufei replied.

"Good set up?" Heero probed as he reached around Duo for a piece of bread.

"Very good," Wufei said reluctantly.

Wufei was not as apt as tracking their destination by the number of turns the car seemed to be making. Anyway, he knew his aim was to get recruited, not arrest the small fry that was coming to recruit losers. Then he was walked through a scanner and asked to strip for a cavity search to be conducted.

"Cavity search," Duo echoed. "I take it they didn't check your teeth."

"They did, for hidden microphones," Wufei said glumly. "But they also got a guy to stick a finger up my ass – really deep too …" He stopped cringing at the memory as he had stood there, naked, bend over, clutching his ankles, cursing every known god in colorful languages – mentally. The doctor had worn a surgical mask covering his face making him unrecognizable other than he was male, had ordered Wufei's blind fold be removed, especially when he had sensed just how uncomfortable Wufei had been at the prospect of being both naked and blind folded. Perhaps it was kindness or perhaps it was that they had a policy against making the people they were hiring less antsy – whatever the case he had been grateful for the small reprieve.

Wufei did not bruise easily but Heero was rather strong and he had had sex in the morning. There were bruises on his hips where Heero had held him and he had being on the receiving end of it, so to speak. The person who had done the body check had not reacted to the sight of his bruises or his. .. well … recent activities. Instead it had been done so professionally he'd felt like a piece of meat about to be auctioned off.

"You know it could be just me," Duo said carefully. "But do you think it'll affect your recruitment."

"It already did," Wufei said a little reluctantly.

"You mean like they'll let you in on their little mercenary camp and keep you as their sex toy," Duo said sarcastically while Heero stopped mid-way reaching for another pickle.

With a hasty look at Heero who was stone faced, Wufei said, "We were right. Someone is feeding them inside information about the Preventers."

"Something they said," Duo asked casually, crossing his ankles and leaning back.

"I guess," Wufei nodded as he blushed furiously. "There were only about two people and I didn't see them but –" 

"Did they interview you while you were naked," Heero asked suddenly.

"No," Wufei snapped. "As you said, it was an interview not an interrogation. Only asked me if it was voluntary." Wufei paused. "I told them it was."

"You look uncomfortable," Heero said as if accusing Wufei of lying.

"I was because they said," he paused and swallowed. "They said they'd heard about a Preventer who matched my description and then added, I quote, 'we heard he's quiet a ladies man which sort of rules you out since you seem to have an abusive boyfriend.'"

There was a short pause and finally Duo gave a snort, "Good thing they don't have your photos out in circulation."

"Abusive boyfriend," Heero intoned in disbelief.

~!#$%^&*()

Heero got into bed and pulled up the cover, then lay back. He would have preferred to sleep on his side or face down but now he was most comfortable sleeping face up since his stomach made in impossible.

Wufei stirred next to him then turned towards him slowly. "You think it was ok to let Duo sleep alone."

"He'll be fine," Heero said quietly. "I'll pick him up first thing tomorrow morning after I drop you off for work."

Silence.

"I'm sorry," Wufei said softly. "I shouldn't have tried to hide stuff from you."

"I wasn't going to leave you know," Heero said equally softly. "I'm not the type to give up that easily."

"We had our first fight," Wufei said softly. "And you threatened to leave me."

"We did," Heero said with a faint smile. "Huu, Quatre and Trowa fight all the time."

"They do," said Wufei looking interested. "From what I hear, they have an interesting sex life as well."

"They are…" Heero tried to describe it to Wufei who had a sort of sheltered upbringing, no matter what. "…adventurous."

"Oh," said Wufei sitting up a little. "I take it they play around a lot."

"Chains, dressing up – things you won't usually try want to try out," Heero said.

"Is there …" Wufei blushed but continued. "Anything you want to try out with me – as an apology. Uh… make up sex sort of thing."

Heero wondered if there was anything he could suggest that would not have Wufei bolting out of bed. "You've watched porn too," he said finally. "So perhaps, is there something you are comfortable with…" He left the rest of the sentence hanging as he thought of examples. "Like …"

When he turned around, Wufei was smirking in manner closely resembling Duo before doing something questionable, that Heero wondered if he should be scared. "Hey, Heero, how do you feel about eating pickles off my chest?"

* In the future they have instant booting computers, not blue screens of death and unlimited memory.

A/N – I know it is short and I know my updating is sporadic. Real life is such a bummer. I'm sorry for the late update but I have not given up on any of my stories so please expect me to finish these.

Thank you for sticking with me and I do appreciate reviews which mean you guys are still reading this.


	5. Chapter 5

Reactions 5

A/N- though this is a 1x5 fic

, this chapter is mostly not. It is … well, oh heck, you'll see

Duo sighed as he relaxed into the hot tub, enjoying the feeling of being surrounded with hot water. He found it had to imagine wasting such a large amount of water but that, he supposed was spacer mentality. He had come back after another day of spending time with Heero, going over space sector 23- 4G-72 scans and that had been tiring.

He had been on Earth close to one and a half weeks and it felt as if he'd been there forever. He usually had dinner with Heero and Wufei, then got dropped off at the extremely large and lonely penthouse suit somewhere close to midnight. Most nights he was too tired and sleepy to care that he was alone. But today, Wufei had come home early, looking flushed, and from the way Heero had crossed then uncrossed his legs, Duo had deemed it wise to make a discreet retreat.

He didn't really mind that his friends were getting some while he did not. It wasn't as if he'd had a regular sex life while he was with Hilde to start off with. But as he lay there, up to his chin in hot water, he started to feel a little lonely. The Jacuzzi could be discreetly called a small swimming pool. It was three and a half feet deep on the deep end and about two feet deep in the shallow end, with a foot high ridge running around the alone the inner wall where people could sit comfortably. It was wide enough for a person to swim three or four strokes at a go and as Duo sat there all alone, far too fucking big for one person.

Duo had showered before getting in; he did not prefer to be stewing in his own dirt so to speak, and his hair was already wet. He sank down until he was completely submerged, and held his breath as long as possible, then came up for air, gasping. He wished there was someone else to play around with or talk to. To screw with.

He was horny – especially since he knew his friends might still be at it. Out of habit, Duo looked at the main door, which was locked, then discreetly slid a hand down his chest. A front room with the sunken bath could be considered a large space and he was not used to jerking off in open spaces - but still, it was tempting.

The only downside was, while his mind was willing, his body was just not interested. There wasn't enough stimuli for his dick to stand up – perhaps a helping hand, he thought as he slipped a hand between his legs and gave a half hearted stroke to his flaccid penis. A slight stir not worth looking into but still Duo managed to give it another stroke. Still nothing apart from a half hearted twitch so he –

The bell to the room chimed and, as he watched it, the door swung open on its hinges Duo was half out of the water, grasped the long handled back scrubber, the closest weapon - before he remembered he was naked and sank back, hoping it was nothing important, and then gaped at the person who was at the doorway.

"Trowa," he gasped, feeling a little foolish. "What … "

"I should have called," Trowa said apologetically, stepping into the room and letting the door shut behind him. Duo heard the soft chime indicating that it was locked before Trowa casually dropped his shoulder bag and nudged it with his foot out of the way. "But I gave the management a call before I came and they told me you were up here all by yourself and hadn't had dinner yet. I ordered us something to eat, if you don't mind." He hesitated and sat down gingerly on the edge of the chair under which his bag rested. "Unless you have plans …"

"No," said Duo self consciously reaching for the towel draped on the edge.

"No," said Trowa waving his hand at Duo. "Stay – in fact I might join you as soon as room service comes here." He leaned down gingerly and started to work on his shoes, wincing as he did so.

"You hurt?" Duo asked as he sat back in the water. He did not want to act like a scared virgin and get out of the water. In any case, Trowa was hardly a stranger to him.

"Nah," Trowa said dismissively. "Had a small slipup at the circus. Bad landing, my partner missed me when I was dismounting and I jarred my knee. It's nothing but I was on a civilian space shuttle to Earth and those seats are so cramped."

Duo could very well understand the problems since he felt cramped in most space shuttles and he was almost a foot shorter than Trowa. "But why did you fly commercial?' he asked.

"Was supposed to be low key," Trowa replied, dropping one shoe to the carpet and starting to work on the other. "I was also supposed to leave last week but got held up at the circus." He finally got the other shoe free and stood up, hands on his lower back, stretching backward. "Damn, a hot water soak would do me good."

"Maybe I should leave…" Duo offered as Trowa pulled off his t-shirt and dropped it carelessly to the floor. Something was very wrong; either Trowa was so tired he did not mind making a mess or all those years of living in luxury had finally tuned him into a slob.

"No, stay," said Trowa with a careless wave of his hand. "That's large enough for the both of us, isn't it?" He turned around to say more then paused as there was a discreet musical chime indicating that their food had arrived. "Get that Duo," he said as he walked into the bedroom. "I'll be joining you after I had a quick shower."

"What do you want me to do?" Duo asked as he grabbed his towel and tied it around his waist as he stood up, even though Trowa's back was turned to him. "Lay it out on the table?" The table was a conference type monstrosity, which was designed with the Winner empire in mind. It was large enough to seat a dozen people comfortably and Duo had not used it once during his stay.

"No," Trowa called over the sound of some more clothes hitting the floor. He had chosen the room next to Duo's, for which Duo was grateful – he had been afraid he had chosen Trowa's room in the penthouse suit, which would have been awkward. "Just drag the whole thing to the side of the tub. We'll eat while we soak." Which sounded like an excellent idea – Duo had had fantasies like that – only it had involved him and Hilde – or well, him and anyone else but Trowa.

But Duo wasn't going to refuse the food since the smells wafting from under the covers were tempting. He dragged the trolley over the hot tub and then flicked off the stainless steel covers cover out of curiosity. Appetizers, he thought –the only four course meal he'd ever had involved four slices bread on the same day – as he studied the arrangement. Small metal cups lined a circular tray, each partially filled with oddly colored goop. In the middle of the tray were flat, flexible-looking transparent discs, large enough to cover his palm. He experimentally dipped a finger into the nearest small 'goop' container and brought it took his mouth. A sour taste exploded on his tongue, making his eyes water and he hastily drew back, trying hard not to splutter. Maybe, rich food was not his thing. With a sigh he looked up as the sound of running water came to a halt and Trowa walking back into the front room dressed in a towel.

"Get back in," Trowa said mildly. "I hate eating alone." He dropped his towel as he approached the Jacuzzi and much to Duo's relief, he wore a small black short underneath.

"I'm – uh –" Duo said gesturing towards the bedroom, clutching his towel. "Got nothing on underneath so…" his intention had been to run in and grab one of his clean underwear from the drawer which was better than skinny dipping but Trowa beat him to it. He hooked a finger around the waist band of his shorts and pushed them down. He stepped over them calmly and dropped it on the top of his towel.

"Better?"

It was not, Duo thought wildly. He had bathed naked with friends on L2 and he did share communal showers but this was so much more intimate he felt distinctly uncomfortable. Still, he could hardly freak out just because he caught a glimpse of Trowa's nine-inch… No, he was not thinking such absurd thoughts. Duo slowly dropped his towel and then got into the water, which did not help his situation since he had not thought to add any bubbles. And it seemed rather stupid to consider using it now so he gave up that idea. Duo kept his eyes fixed on the far side until Trowa was in the water then tired to hold a decent conversation. "So," he said, hoping his voice did not sound squeaky. "Food."

"Right," said Trowa, pulling the trolley closer. "Come here, I don't think you can eat from all the way over there."

_There was that problem_, Duo thought. But he slid over along the edge until he was an arm's length from Trowa and pointedly kept his eyes fixed on the tray. Trowa rather skillfully took a series of small spoons from between the folds of a white handkerchief – or wait, was it called a serviette? – Duo was never sure with these rich people – and took a little of the goop from each bowl and started to place it in the middle of the transparent round sheet. He then folded it up with long, dexterous fingers so it resembled a small roll and held it out to Duo.

"Take a bite," Trowa offered.

Remembering his earlier attempt at tasting, Duo shook his head but Trowa kept on holding up to him that Duo was forced to either taste it or appear rude. What the heck, he's eaten worse while he was on the streets and nothing beat Hilde's cooking when it came to strong flavors especially in the colony where cooking always used strong flavors to suppress the taste of recycled water and recycled proteins. With a mental shrug, Duo reached forward for it and then realized Trowa had no inclination to let go of the whole thing. Instead, he seemed to expect Duo to take a bite out of the small – er - whatever, while Trowa held onto the other end. Duo was tempted the bite Trowa's fingers as well but he instead leaned forward carefully and bit into the corner as daintily as possible and drew back.

Trowa promptly pushed the rest of it into his mouth and bit into it confidently – and the taste did not seem to floor him so Duo tentatively decided to chew and swallow instead of trying to swallow it whole.

Duo bit into it and his toes curled at the taste. A myriad and varied flavors exploded in his mouth as the gelatinous outer cover melted on his tongue. The sour taste was swept off on a sweet aftertaste and there was just enough of a salty flavor to chase that off.

"Hey," he exclaimed in surprise. "This is good!"

"It's all in how you mix them up," said Trowa, deftly making another small roll, which he held out as before to Duo. This time Duo took a more adventurous bite and chewed onto it without hesitating. The taste was different, there was a touch of bitterness but overall, it was awesome. "Here," said Trowa, gesturing Duo towards the tray. "You try it."

"No way," said Duo backing off, more because he was unsure of his skill than because he didn't want to sit naked hip-to-hip with tall-one-eye.

"It's not hard," Trowa said with a glint in his visible eye. "Give it a try and no cheating. You can't taste it beforehand so it's all in luck."

"Fine," said Duo as he moved forward. "Do I have to put in all of them?"

"No," said Trowa as he pulled Duo closer to him by placing a hand on his shoulder. "No more than seven flavors but no less that three."

Duo ignored Trowa's hand on his shoulder as he made an attempt at mixing goop. His roll came out lopsided with a bit of bright orange paste seeping out of the corner – making it was not as easy as he had assumed it to be. Duo shrugged and then started to bring it to his mouth.

"Let me try it," Trowa offered.

"No way," Duo protested. "I made it – so if it's inedible, I'll be the first to know." Bit into it bravely and chewed. It was a little too salty and the orange goop was rose flavored, so it seemed to stick to his palate but it was not bad. He held out the rest of Trowa – "Here, I think you'll live." He held it low so Trowa would have to take it off his hand and eat it, not have him hand feed.

Trowa leaned forward, grabbed Duo's wrist in a none-too-gentle grasp and brought up his hand to his mouth. Before Duo could react and let go, Trowa's lips closed over Duos fingers as well as the left over food and as his tongue swept over his digits, Duo had to fight not to snap back and gasp. Duo was not as stupid as not to know notice when he was being flirted with – he might have missed the finer points but this was beyond obvious and he did not want any part of it. So, all right, so parts of him were taking an slight interest in it but really – this was –

"Quatre sends his love," Trowa said casually as he held on to Duo's wrist. "So, how are Heero and Wufei?"

"Gah," said Duo, feeling rather verbal. "Um – Trowa – aren't you acting a little out of character here?" especially since Duo's hand was still being held by Trowa and really, did Trowa need to edge closer to him? Now he was starting to imagine things.

"We – that is, Qutre and I - spoke to Hilde before I left," Trowa added as if commenting about the weather and the part of Duo's body that had been happy with the prospect of another naked body next to him, wilted a little.

"Oh," he said, looking down at the water, and at his hands now clasped between his legs modestly. "How is she?"

"She says you two are thinking of separating." Trowa had taken lessons from Heero on the art of conversation.

"Not really," Duo mumbled. Well, he hadn't.

"She says you've changed," Trowa said blandly, neither questioning nor accusing.

"Easy for her to say," Duo snapped. "She's the one who – " He paused and looked down. It was a familiar argument. If he could blame it on Hilde, it would have been nice. But she was good person, she did not cheat on him, did not embarrass him in public, and she was a good mother to the kids. While she had not been enthusiastic about adopting, once they had, she had gone all out to make it up for that. The kids in turn adored her and it seemed more and more as if he was the bad guy. Never home, never there. Always out on his ship or somewhere around in the colony tinkering with stuff. Maybe, he was the one who was not cut out to be a family man.

"She said she suggested therapy and you refused," Trowa said, his hand a warm comfort on Duo's shoulder.

Therapy was a thing rich people did when they had too much money and time to waste on spilling personal problems to a total stranger. "It's not something I want to talk about." He looked down and then let Trowa shove another bite into his mouth unresistingly. "Let's just drop it, shall we?" He swallowed the sugar overloaded mouthful and then looked at Trowa who was still rubbing his shoulder. "So, let me try making one of those."

Trowa waited until Duo had mixed up something before he decided to instruct Duo in the fine art of wrapping it up. It seemed the process of instructing involved a lot of pressing against Duo and – oh, god – Duo's body was definitely interested. Finally, giving up the pretense of even pretending to be unaware, Duo snapped. "Tro, give me some space will you?" he barked. "I don't need this – whatever you're doing. So don't try to cuddle me and then…"

He looked up into a pair of totally blank green eyes, which looked more curious about Duo's outburst than defensive, and looked down at his semi-erect state. "Look," he said. "Maybe it's me who's reading too much into your actions. It's been a while and I'm …"

Trowa lifted Duo's chin with his index finger and kissed him, hard. Trowa tasted of something coppery like blood and sugary sweetness of the food they had been consuming. It was the first time Duo had been kissed by someone stronger than him. He had kissed a few women who were taller than him but none of them were ever this brutal with their lips and their tongue. It was overwhelming. Trowa practically lifted Duo clean off the edge and into his lap, using his superior height and strength to bring Duo closer.

By the time Duo even thought of pushing Trowa away, his body had already reacted to the sensation and he found himself kissing back – a little stunned but not at all half-heartedly. He knew that he should move, but a part of his body – including his mouth that was continuing to kiss, seemed to really enjoy the bodily contact. Little Duo was at full mast, brushing against Trowa's, getting acquainted.

Finally, Duo broke free, stumbled back and fell into the water on his butt with a splash. "Trowa!" he shouted. "Cut it out." Trowa did not answer but rather looked at Duo's erection which was obvious through the clear water.

"Think about Quatre!" Duo snapped defensively. "How dare you…"

"Do you really think I'd do anything that would hurt Quatre?" Trowa said softly as he walked forward. Duo noted that Trowa's erection was fucking impressive, but decided that he really did not need to see it and most certainly did not want to get acquainted with it any closer.

"I don't know," Duo said scrambling back, trying to find his feet. "You tell me."

Trowa did not speak. Instead he stood over Duo silently and then held out his hand to help him up. Duo did not know if he should take it or not, but in the end Trowa was still Trowa and he was just a sexually frustrated, confused idiot. He took the offered hand and let Trowa help him up then lead him back to the ledge.

"Let's just eat," Trowa said softly. "It'd be a shame to let the food go to waste."

Duo wanted to get out of the water and run to his room but at the same time, he was curious enough to want to stay. He looked at Trowa and nodded. Whatever it was seconds before, it seemed to be all but forgotten and he was hungry. But first he was going to shower, jerk off and change into something comfortable but concealing.

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"That was uncalled for," Wufei snarled as he stepped out of Lady Une's office with his partner. "You didn't have to say something so obvious that even a blind woman would be able to spot that something was going on between me and Heero."

"I merely gave her suggestion the proper respect it deserved," Sharine said with a smirk and Wufei swore colorfully under his breath.

"She _suggested_ installing security cameras in my apartment," Wufei gritted out. "And you told her there should be a few in the bedroom and that bathroom. What sort of a suggestion is that?"

"Helpful," Sharine said playfully. "You might not appreciate the humor but when she asked you if Heero was _up_ and about, I found it bloody hilarious."

"What…"

"You should have seen the pun in …"

Wufei growled. "You seem to be in a good mood," he said instead of snapping her head off as he wanted to. Tempers were flying high since it had been to weeks since his interview with the recruiters. Still, there was the chance he would be contacted eventually, especially since the underground source suggested that on one had been contacted yet. Either they were not taking in anyone new or taking their time making up their minds.

He sighed and pushed the thought aside to glare at his partner who was grinning from ear to ear while trying to look mysterious. "All right, I give up," Wufei said. "Out with it – what do you want?"

"Nothing," Sharine said chirpily. "I can think of a lot of others who need your talent."

Just as Wufei was to berate her for smart assed remarks, she held up a hand, indicating to the notice of the common wall. He squinted at it out of habit, not that he needed to since his eye sight was back to normal and nodded. "You want me to give money to one of your charity shows."

"For a good cause," Sharine said with a wink. "It's the orphanage I grew up in so when mother superior says, Sharine bring me a platter of gold, I ask …"

"Should I steal it or buy it," said a dry voice behind them and Wufei turned around with a smile.

"Duo," he said warmly. "Didn't expect to see you here."

"Yeah well," Duo grinned evasively and looked away not quiet meeting his eyes. "I thought I'd go for a change of plans and …" He shrugged as he walked up to the notice Sharine and pointed out and started to read it avidly as if it was the most interesting thing in the whole world.

The word Wufei could think of to describe Duo was skittish; he looked like a cat that had been stepped by a herd of stampeding elephants. His braid was undone at the end, his eyes had a slightly wild look and he stared at Wufei as if he expected his friend to bite him.

"What ran over you?" Wufei asked gruffly though his eyes took in the details with a slight frown. Duo did not look like himself and that was not good.

"Nothing," Duo snapped. No witty come back, nothing – just a few shakes of his head and a half-snarl.

"Aren't you going to go over some maps with Heero?" Wufei asked, more because his friend was making him uneasy. Let Heero deal with it, Heero was good at dealing with everything from love sick fan girls to raving mad women.

"Who - me," Duo said in an attempt to appear funny though it came out pathetic.

He wanted to lead his friend to a side and question him about it but he did not think Duo would welcome the presence of Sharine. So he settled for a, "Did you and Heero have a fight?"

Duo gave a half laugh bordering on hysterical and Wufei strode up to Duo to grip him on the shoulder and turn him around. "What gives?" he demanded, hoping it wasn't anything serious. He had practically driven Duo out of their apartment early yesterday but he did not think Duo was mad at him for that. But Wufei was not stupid and he knew that Heero and Duo had a bond that had started during the wartime far earlier than Heero and Wufei had.

"Nothing," Duo said, slipping free of Wufei's grip. "I - thought I could use a break and you guys could use some space while you break the news to Trowa."

"Barton's here," Wufei exclaimed in surprise. "I didn't know that."

"He - uh, dropped in last night," Duo said with a shrug. "It was too late to call you guys and I think he'll be dropping by at your apartment any time now."

"Well, that's surprising," said Wufei walking up the office vid – phone, keying in the home number and waiting for Heero to pick it up. Heero answered on the second ring and though he did not exactly smile, his expression relaxed when he saw Wufei. "Did Barton call you up?" he asked getting straight to the point. "Duo tells me he made Earthside yesterday."

"Not yet," Heero said with a slight frown. "Why is Duo there?"

"He's …" Wufei looked at Duo who was looking pointedly at the wall while Sharine was throwing him something closely resembling a sale pitch, not that Duo needed any persuasion to give to an orphanage. " - avoiding something." When Duo did not dispute it, Wufei turned his attention back to Heero. He wished they had the privacy to talk but with Sharine and Duo within hearing distance he settled for mouthing, "did he say anything like that yesterday?"

Heero shook his head slightly, once to show that they had not and then added, "Will you be cooking lunch or brining take out?"

Wufei paused, a little taken aback. He had intended to spend the entire day at office and since Trowa was going to be at the apartment, he knew Heero would be occupied. It was at the tip of his tongue to ask if something was wrong but did not know how to word it properly without coming across as over protective.

"Take out," Wufei replied instead, knowing their fridge and pantry was nearly empty. "I'll have to pick up some groceries another time."

"Fine," Heero nodded. "I also need a couple of …" he drifted off and looked over Wufei's shoulder; scowling, making Wufei twist around to see who was behind him.

"Hey, tubby," said Sharine was a way of greeting, moving closer to Wufei. She causally put an elbow of Wufei's shoulder leaned forward and smirked at the screen. "Putting on weight aren't we darling. You sure that diet of yours is working."

The look on Heero's face said he was clearly wishing for a gun. While Wufei appreciated that Sharine had never flirted with him since he had told her he was with Heero, she sometimes acted over friendly with him in Heero's presence. This was merely a little teasing on her part, Wufei knew but Heero did not seem to understand. Additionally, Heero had been putting on a little weight around the middle which made him a little sensitive about weight issues as Wufei had come to find out. "Do you want something?" Wufei asked dryly from Sharine.

"Just came to tell you Duo and I are going to head out," she said with a shrug.

"I'm also heading out," Wufei replied. Lady Une was going to be really pissed to find out half her Preventers were out of office. "Is this something important?"

"Got a lead that there are signs of a small atmospheric craft making illegal landings in the warehouse district," Sharine replied.

"You do?" Wufei asked perking up, forgetting Heero for a moment.

"Actually, no," Sharine admitted with a pout. "It's actually a UFO sighting but Duo and I agreed the light pattern they reported closely resembles one of those Luna-build atmospheric droppers. People aren't that familiar with it."

"But wouldn't it have been caught on the grid," Wufei asked. "A drop in such a busy industrial area is too much of a risk."

"But there are three mobile phone towers there," Heero suddenly spoke up from the screen startling the other two. "Anyone making a drop can use those for covers. They use a frequency similar to grid pattern searches and perhaps a little tweaking to the cloaking and …"

"Thanks, Yuy," Wufei replied cursing his slip. He should have called up a reference map the moment the conversation had started. "Do you want me to come?" Wufei added to his partner out of habit. Sniffing around a landing site in board daylight something Sharine could handle but they were still partners.

"I'm not going alone," Sharine replied with a nod to Heero, acknowledging his contribution. "I'm going with Duo and he says he can handle himself." She looked at Wufei for approval.

"He'll take care of both of you," Wufei told her, reassuring her wordlessly.

"That settles it," Sharine nodded straightening up. "See ya' around tubby," she waved at Heero who looked positively murderous and sauntered away towards Duo who had not joined the conversation though he was hovering within hearing distance.

"What did you want me to pick up?" Wufei asked hastily before Heero could drive over and kill Sharine.

"Underwear," Heero snapped.

Wufei blinked and wondered if it was some sort of code word to mean trouble, danger or impending doom. Heero did not wear underwear and he knew that first hand. His first instinct was to ask, '_Who are you and what have you done to Heero?_' but he did not think his boyfriend would appreciate the humor. "All right," Wufei said carefully. "Why?"

Heero stared at him for a while then snapped off the connection abruptly, reassuring Wufei that it was indeed Heero who had been speaking to him.

~!#$%^&*()_+

Trowa was fascinated by Heero. He'd always found people with a thread of vulnerability in them fascination. Quatre was always insecure about something despite everything. The blond had a vein of kindness that made him hesitate, even when he was killing his enemies and Trowa was drawn to it from the beginning. Wufei had proved irresistible while he had been recovering after the eye operation, radiating fear and uncertainty from every pore. Then Duo, the previous night, wallowing in his own self- doubt and misery. Floating in the Jacuzzi, hair loose, looking like something out of a fairy tale – Trowa had bumped the agenda a little forward and it seems as if he had pushed a little too hard. Now Quatre was mad at him for making a mess of things and there was no way he could call up Quatre about the latest development regarding Heero.

"Pregnant, huh," Trowa said stepping forward. He could see Heero twitched slightly and smiled. Heero could sense his moods very well and probably, on some unconscious level knew exactly what Trowa was thinking.

"Wufei will be here soon," Heero offered as if in warning.

"Good," said Trowa throwing his arms around Heero and giving him a hug. He could feel Heero's body, the changes brought on by his condition and suddenly wanted to tear off his clothes and see the full extent with his own eyes. However, Trowa settled for a quick feel, knowing that Heero was not so stupid that he was unaware as to what Trowa was doing and then stepped back. "Congratulations," he said smiling. He couldn't help it – this was Heero.

"Thank you," Heero said slightly taken aback. "What did you do to Duo?"

Trowa was momentarily taken aback, then shrugged. "What did he tell you?"

"Nothing," Heero replied. "He didn't say anything and if it had been someone else he would have been more forthcoming."

"Touché," Trowa acknowledged. "Quatre wants me to take care of him since Hilde is filing for a divorce."

"Ah," said Heero, his turn to be stunned. "Don't," he added. "He might joke but he's not comfortable with everything."

"So I found out," Trowa aid agreeably. He desperately wanted to kiss Heero to see if he would taste different but bit back the urge. Heero Yuy was still the same person and a broken jaw would not sit well on top of everything else. Plus, Trowa did not think Wufei was the sharing type either. Teasing was fun, overstepping boundaries was something totally different.

"Sit down," Heero said sitting on the sofa and Trowa followed suit sitting next to him. "How long are you here for?"

"Until Quatre gives me the all clear sign to move on," he told Heero. "He came by a communication feed of some interest – when's Wufei coming, I can tell both of you together."

"He'll be here," Heero said. "He should have left the office by now."

"Until then, you can give me something to do," Trowa said relaxing. "Do you have any medical files about your condition I can go through?"

"I'll give you everything Sally gave to me," Heero said as he got up, slightly awkwardly a sign with Trowa would have missed had he not being watching for specifically that.

"Sit," Trowa said, motioning Heero to stay put. "Tell me where it is and I'll get it."

"Do you think I've put on weight," Heero asked abruptly and Trowa paused, looking around.

"A little," Trowa said, not wanting to lie. "I think that's to be expected … what brought that on?"

Heero scowled and looked away, slightly uncomfortable with the conversation. "Wufei's partner called me tubby."

"Blonde with the skinny legs," Trowa guessed.

"Her," Heero said with a grimace. "She is …" he paused and crooked his head to a side as if listening. "Wufei's here."

Trowa nodded, took the medical data-container, switched it on and let Heero access it with his retinal scan. He started to go over it swiftly, knowing that Wufei would be coming up any moment and they might have a different conversation. He did not have long as if were since Wufei walked in through the doorway, in his Preventer uniform looking slightly distanced.

At the sight of Trowa he paused, dropped the carryall he was holding on to the floor, pulled off his boots and smiled, "Barton, why didn't you call ahead. Had to get the news from Duo second hand today."

"To be expected," Heero said from the sofa. "Trowa's here under Quatre's orders and it's supposed to be top secret."

"Should I be worried?" Wufei asked as he walked forward and Trowa stood up, pulling the short Chinese man into a hug. He could not help it, Wufei was pocket-size, when compared to even Duo. Wufei had such delicate hands and feet, Trowa could very well imagine him living in the feudal era as someone's concubine, with bound feet. Pushing aside such ridiculous thoughts Trowa hugged Wufei, lifting him off the floor just to see if it would annoy him. When he deposited Wufei back on the floor he was scowling but seemed amused as well.

Heero snorted, letting them know he was amused. When Trowa looked over his shoulder, Heero smiled then asked, "What's for lunch?"

"It's 11.30," Wufei replied rolling his eyes but picked up the carryall. "I'll serve it up and we can discuss this situation as we eat. That's ok with you, Barton."

Trowa, always ready to eat nodded in agreement. "I suppose Heero eats more now."

"More," Wufei snorted as he padded towards the kitchen. "He's going to eat me out of my apartment."

Trowa looked at Heero to see if he would be offended by the comment. To his surprise, Heero smiled at him confidentially, rubbed his stomach and said rather loudly, "I've got a baby dragon inside me. What can I say?"

A/N- I'm home for the holidays. I think I typed the same thing in my ffvii fic. Oh well, it's not mpreg, this is.

I think my next chapter will be next year. So Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone.


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